Digital codes from hypervariable tandemly repeated DNA sequences in the Plasmodium falciparum circumsporozoite gene can genetically barcode isolates.

DNA typing systems currently used in parasitology involve either hybridising Southern blots with repetitive sequence probes or amplifying genomic sequences using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Both such approaches assay allelic length variation, usually in unexpressed tandemly repeated DNA sequences. Where an appropriate target locus exists, an alternative PCR-based strategy which reveals allelic sequence variation in tandemly repeated DNA offers a more accurate and internally controlled assay. We describe such a strategy for the rapid extraction of information on tandem repeat sequence variation from hypervariable alleles, and apply it to the Plasmodium falciparum CS gene. The extreme variability of such DNA 'barcodes' can be used to identify parasite stocks and lineages. This system is also potentially useful for population genetic and epidemiological studies since it offers the possibility of following the spread of distinctively marked parasite genotypes in samples taken from infected individuals.