Genetics, Vol. 166, 637-640, January 2004, Copyright © 2004

Compensatory Evolution in the Human Malaria Parasite Plasmodium ovale

Thomas F. McCutchana, Dharmendar Rathoreb, and Jun Lia
a Growth and Development Section, Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892-0425
b Virginia Bioinformatics Institute, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia 24061

Corresponding author: Thomas F. McCutchan, LMVR, NIAID, NIH, 4 Center Dr., Room 126, Bethesda, MD 20892-0425., tmccutchan{at}niaid.nih.gov (E-mail)

Communicating editor: W. STEPHAN

The fixation of neutral compensatory mutations in a population depends on the effective population size of the species, which can fluctuate dramatically within a few generations, the mutation rate, and the selection intensity associated with the individual mutations. We observe compensatory mutations and intermediate states in populations of the malaria parasite Plasmodium ovale. The appearance of compensatory mutations and intermediate states in P. ovale raises interesting questions about population structure that could have considerable impact on the control of the associated disease.




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Am J Trop Med HygHome page
R. Wickremasinghe, G. N. L. Galapaththy, W. A. P. Fernando, F. de Monbrison, R. S. Wijesinghe, K. N. Mendis, S. Picot, P. Ringwald, and A. R. Wickremasinghe
An Indigenous Case of Plasmodium ovale Infection in Sri Lanka
Am J Trop Med Hyg, February 1, 2008; 78(2): 206 - 207.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Am J Trop Med HygHome page
S. INCARDONA, S. CHY, L. CHIV, S. NHEM, R. SEM, S. HEWITT, S. DOUNG, O. MERCEREAU-PUIJALON, and T. FANDEUR
LARGE SEQUENCE HETEROGENEITY OF THE SMALL SUBUNIT RIBOSOMAL RNA GENE OF PLASMODIUM OVALE IN CAMBODIA
Am J Trop Med Hyg, June 1, 2005; 72(6): 719 - 724.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]