Networks of genetic similarity reveal non-neutral processes shape strain structure in Plasmodium falciparum

Plasmodium has evolved high genetic diversity in var genes, which encode for the major blood-stage antigen. Here, He et al. show how immune selection shapes the var gene repertoire in both simulated systems and a population in Ghana, by using neutral models and genetic similarity networks.

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Qixin He, Shai Pilosof, Kathryn E. Tiedje, Shazia Ruybal-Pesántez, Yael Artzy-Randrup, Edward B. Baskerville, Karen P. Day, Mercedes Pascual
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Publishing Group 2018-05-01
Series:Nature Communications
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-018-04219-3