title: Microsatellite DNA analysis revealed a drastic genetic change of Plasmodium vivax population in the Republic of Korea during 2002 and 2003.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Vivax malaria was successfully eliminated in the Republic of Korea (South Korea) in the late 1970s, but it was found to have re-emerged from 1993. In order to control malaria and evaluate the effectiveness of malaria controls, it is important to develop a spatiotemporal understanding of the genetic structure of the parasite population. Here, we estimated the population structure and temporal dynamics of the transmission of Plasmodium vivax in South Korea by analyzing microsatellite DNA markers of the parasite.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We analyzed 14 microsatellite DNA loci of the P. vivax genome from 163 South Korean isolates collected from 1994 to 2008. Allelic data were used to analyze linkage disequilibrium (LD), genetic differentiation and population structure, in order to make a detailed estimate of temporal change in the parasite population. The LD analysis showed a gradual decrease in LD levels, while the levels of genetic differentiation between successive years and analysis of the population structure based on the Bayesian approach suggested that a drastic genetic change occurred in the South Korean population during 2002 and 2003.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although relapse and asymptomatic parasite carriage might influence the population structure to some extent, our results suggested the continual introduction of P. vivax into South Korea through other parasite population sources. One possible source, particularly during 2002 and 2003, is North Korea. Molecular epidemiology using microsatellite DNA of the P. vivax population is effective for assessing the population structure and temporal dynamics of parasite transmission; information that can assist in the elimination of vivax malaria in endemic areas.
authors.affiliation: Department of Tropical Medicine and Malaria, Research Institute, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Moritoshi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Iwagami
authors.forename: Seung-Young
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Hwang
authors.forename: So-Hee
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: So-Jung
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Ga-Young
authors.initials: GY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Emilie Louise Akiko
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Matsumoto-Takahashi
authors.forename: Weon-Gyu
authors.initials: WG
authors.lastname: Kho
authors.forename: Shigeyuki
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kano
mesh_terms: D016054:DNA, Protozoan / Q000235:genetics*; D005838:Genotype; D060005:Genotyping Techniques; D006801:Humans; D016780:Malaria, Vivax / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000469:parasitology*; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats; D017720:Molecular Epidemiology; D010966:Plasmodium vivax / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D056910:Republic of Korea
chemical_list: D016054:DNA, Protozoan