Genetic Diversity of Polymorphic Marker Merozoite Surface Protein 1 () and 2 () Genes of Isolates From Malaria Endemic Region of Pakistan.

Understanding the genetic diversity of species through polymorphic studies can assist in designing more effective control strategies of malaria like new drug formulation and development of a vaccine. Pakistan is moderate endemic for , but little is known about the genetic diversity of this parasite. This study aimed to investigate the molecular diversity of based on and genes in the malaria-endemic regions of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. A total of 199/723 blood samples, tested positive by microscopy for malaria, were collected from four districts (Dera Ismail Khan, Karak, Mardan, and Peshawar) of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Nested PCR amplification technique was employed to target block 2 of and the central domain of genes, including their respective allelic families K1, MAD20, RO33, FC27, and 3D7/IC, and to detect the extent of genetic diversity of clinical isolates. Among the 199 microscopy-positive samples, a total of 192 were confirmed using PCR. Ninety-seven amplicons were observed for - and 95 for . A total of 33 genotypes, 17 for (eight K1, six MAD20, and three RO33) and 16 for (nine FC27 and seven 3D7/IC), were identified. The specific allelic frequency of the K1 family was higher (44.3%) than that of MAD20 (33.0%) and RO33 (23.0%) for , while the FC27 allelic family was dominant (60.0%) compared with 3D7/IC (40.0%) for . No polyclonal infection was observed in and . The expected heterozygosity was 0.98 and 0.97 for and , respectively. It was concluded that the populations are highly polymorphic, and diverse allelic variants of and are present in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.