A trial for a DNA diagnosis of Plasmodium vivax malaria recently reemerging in the Republic of Korea using microtiter plate hybridization assay.
The polymerase chain reaction-based microtiter plate hybridization (PCR-MPH) assay was utilized for a DNA diagnosis of Plasmodium vivax malaria, which has recently reemerged in the Republic of Korea. The subjects were 18 parasite-proven patients and 5 healthy controls. Follow-up blood samples were collected from 4 patients after a standard course of treatment. Polymerase chain reaction and electrophoresis of all the patients' blood showed a prominent band at the 138 base pair area, but not in the controls or after treating the patients. Hybridization of the PCR products with known species-specific probes of the 18S rRNA of various malaria species revealed strong positive reactions against the Plasmodium vivax-specific probe (absorbance 1.30-1.90 at 405 nm) in all of the patients. The absorbance was positively correlated with the degree of blood parasitemia, but with a borderline significance. Sequencing of the probe region of the Korean P. vivax revealed no significant variations from the typical P. vivax. The results show that the PCR-MPH is a highly useful technique for the DNA diagnosis of Korean vivax malaria.
Chai
J Y
JY
Department of Parasitology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Institute of Endemic Diseases, Seoul National University Medical Research Center, Korea. cjy@plaza.snu.ac.kr
Park
Y K
YK
Guk
S M
SM
Oh
K H
KH
Oh
M D
MD
Lee
S H
SH
Kim
H S
HS
Wataya
Y
Y
D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002675:Child, Preschool; D017931:DNA Primers; D004587:Electrophoresis, Agar Gel; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007723:Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D016780:Malaria, Vivax / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D009693:Nucleic Acid Hybridization; D010966:Plasmodium vivax / Q000235:genetics*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000592:standards; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D016053:RNA, Protozoan / Q000302:isolation & purification*
D017931:DNA Primers; D016053:RNA, Protozoan