Whole-genome analysis of Zambian Plasmodium falciparum infections.
Dried blood spot (DBS) samples were collected from children under the age of five across ten provinces in Zambia as part of the 2018 Malaria Indicator Survey (MIS). Genomic DNA was extracted from PET-PCR positive Plasmodium falciparum DBS samples and subjected to whole-genome capture and sequencing using a 4-plex hybrid capture method (adapted from Carpi et al. 2015) to selectively enrich for P. falciparum genomes. The goal of this project is to characterize within-host parasite diversity, genome-wide relatedness between parasites, and antimalarial drug resistance patterns across Zambia using countrywide representative samples. The 325 WGS sample data generated here are also part of a study to assess the natural genetic diversity of multiple vaccine candidate antigens in P. falciparum with a focus on Zambia.