Abstract
Monitoring the genetic structure of pathogen populations may be an
economical and sensitive approach to quantify the impact of control on
transmission dynamics, highlighting the need for a better understanding
of changes in population genetic parameters as transmission declines.
Here we describe the first population genetic analysis of the major
human malaria parasites, Plasmodium falciparum (Pf) and
Plasmodium vivax (Pv) populations following nationwide
distribution of long-lasting insecticide treated nets (LLIN) in Papua
New Guinea (PNG). Parasite isolates from pre- (2005-6) and post-LLIN
(2010-2014) were genotyped using microsatellite markers. Despite
parasite prevalence declining substantially (East Sepik: Pf=54.9-8.5%,
Pv=35.7-5.6%, Madang: Pf=38.0-9.0%, Pv: 31.8-19.7%), genetically
diverse and intermixing parasite populations remained. Pf diversity
declined modestly post-LLIN relative to pre-LLIN (East Sepik: Rs =
7.1-6.4, He = 0.77-0.71; Madang: Rs= 8.2-6.1, He = 0.79-0.71).
Unexpectedly, population structure present in pre-LLIN populations was
lost post-LLIN, suggesting that more frequent human movement between
provinces may have contributed to higher gene flow. Pv prevalence
initially declined but increased again in one province, yet diversity
remained high throughout the study period (East Sepik: Rs=11.4-9.3,
He=0.83-0.80; Madang: Rs=12.2-14.5, He=0.85-0.88). Although genetic
differentiation values increased between provinces over time, no
significant population structure was observed at any time point. For
both species, a decline in multiple infections and increasing clonal
transmission and significant multilocus linkage disequilibrium (mLD)
post-LLIN was a positive indicator of impact on the parasite population
using microsatellite markers. These parameters may be useful adjuncts to
traditional epidemiological tools in the early stages of transmission
reduction.