Prospective assessment of malaria infection in a semi-isolated Amazonian indigenous Yanomami community: Transmission heterogeneity and predominance of submicroscopic infection.

In the Amazon basin, indigenous forest-dwelling communities typically suffer from a high burden of infectious diseases, including malaria. Difficulties in accessing these isolated ethnic groups, such as the semi-nomadic Yanomami, make official malaria data largely underestimated. In the current stud...

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Main Authors: Daniela Rocha Robortella, Anderson Augusto Calvet, Lara Cotta Amaral, Raianna Farhat Fantin, Luiz Felipe Ferreira Guimarães, Michelle Hallais França Dias, Cristiana Ferreira Alves de Brito, Tais Nobrega de Sousa, Mariza Maia Herzog, Joseli Oliveira-Ferreira, Luzia Helena Carvalho
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2020-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0230643
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spelling doaj-e68bf77b830e4a188b707177f0c80eb42021-03-03T21:38:22ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032020-01-01153e023064310.1371/journal.pone.0230643Prospective assessment of malaria infection in a semi-isolated Amazonian indigenous Yanomami community: Transmission heterogeneity and predominance of submicroscopic infection.Daniela Rocha RobortellaAnderson Augusto CalvetLara Cotta AmaralRaianna Farhat FantinLuiz Felipe Ferreira GuimarãesMichelle Hallais França DiasCristiana Ferreira Alves de BritoTais Nobrega de SousaMariza Maia HerzogJoseli Oliveira-FerreiraLuzia Helena CarvalhoIn the Amazon basin, indigenous forest-dwelling communities typically suffer from a high burden of infectious diseases, including malaria. Difficulties in accessing these isolated ethnic groups, such as the semi-nomadic Yanomami, make official malaria data largely underestimated. In the current study, we longitudinally surveyed microscopic and submicroscopic malaria infection in four Yanomami villages of the Marari community in the northern-most region of the Brazilian Amazon. Malaria parasite species-specific PCR-based detection of ribosomal and non-ribosomal targets showed that approximately 75% to 80% of all malaria infections were submicroscopic, with the ratio of submicroscopic to microscopic infection remaining stable over the 4-month follow-up period. Although the prevalence of malaria infection fluctuated over time, microscopically-detectable parasitemia was only found in children and adolescents, presumably reflecting their higher susceptibility to malaria infection. As well as temporal variation, the prevalence of malaria infection differed significantly between villages (from 1% to 19%), demonstrating a marked heterogeneity at micro-scales. Over the study period, Plasmodium vivax was the most commonly detected malaria parasite species, followed by P. malariae, and much less frequently P. falciparum. Consecutive blood samples from 859 out of the 981 studied Yanomami showed that malaria parasites were detected in only 8% of the previously malaria-positive individuals, with most of them young children (median age 3 yrs). Overall, our results show that molecular tools are more sensitive for the identification of malaria infection among the Yanomami, which is characterized by heterogeneous transmission, a predominance of low-density infections, circulation of multiple malaria parasite species, and a higher susceptibility in young children. Our findings are important for the design and implementation of the new strategic interventions that will be required for the elimination of malaria from isolated indigenous populations in Latin America.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0230643
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Daniela Rocha Robortella
Anderson Augusto Calvet
Lara Cotta Amaral
Raianna Farhat Fantin
Luiz Felipe Ferreira Guimarães
Michelle Hallais França Dias
Cristiana Ferreira Alves de Brito
Tais Nobrega de Sousa
Mariza Maia Herzog
Joseli Oliveira-Ferreira
Luzia Helena Carvalho
spellingShingle Daniela Rocha Robortella
Anderson Augusto Calvet
Lara Cotta Amaral
Raianna Farhat Fantin
Luiz Felipe Ferreira Guimarães
Michelle Hallais França Dias
Cristiana Ferreira Alves de Brito
Tais Nobrega de Sousa
Mariza Maia Herzog
Joseli Oliveira-Ferreira
Luzia Helena Carvalho
Prospective assessment of malaria infection in a semi-isolated Amazonian indigenous Yanomami community: Transmission heterogeneity and predominance of submicroscopic infection.
PLoS ONE
author_facet Daniela Rocha Robortella
Anderson Augusto Calvet
Lara Cotta Amaral
Raianna Farhat Fantin
Luiz Felipe Ferreira Guimarães
Michelle Hallais França Dias
Cristiana Ferreira Alves de Brito
Tais Nobrega de Sousa
Mariza Maia Herzog
Joseli Oliveira-Ferreira
Luzia Helena Carvalho
author_sort Daniela Rocha Robortella
title Prospective assessment of malaria infection in a semi-isolated Amazonian indigenous Yanomami community: Transmission heterogeneity and predominance of submicroscopic infection.
title_short Prospective assessment of malaria infection in a semi-isolated Amazonian indigenous Yanomami community: Transmission heterogeneity and predominance of submicroscopic infection.
title_full Prospective assessment of malaria infection in a semi-isolated Amazonian indigenous Yanomami community: Transmission heterogeneity and predominance of submicroscopic infection.
title_fullStr Prospective assessment of malaria infection in a semi-isolated Amazonian indigenous Yanomami community: Transmission heterogeneity and predominance of submicroscopic infection.
title_full_unstemmed Prospective assessment of malaria infection in a semi-isolated Amazonian indigenous Yanomami community: Transmission heterogeneity and predominance of submicroscopic infection.
title_sort prospective assessment of malaria infection in a semi-isolated amazonian indigenous yanomami community: transmission heterogeneity and predominance of submicroscopic infection.
publisher Public Library of Science (PLoS)
series PLoS ONE
issn 1932-6203
publishDate 2020-01-01
description In the Amazon basin, indigenous forest-dwelling communities typically suffer from a high burden of infectious diseases, including malaria. Difficulties in accessing these isolated ethnic groups, such as the semi-nomadic Yanomami, make official malaria data largely underestimated. In the current study, we longitudinally surveyed microscopic and submicroscopic malaria infection in four Yanomami villages of the Marari community in the northern-most region of the Brazilian Amazon. Malaria parasite species-specific PCR-based detection of ribosomal and non-ribosomal targets showed that approximately 75% to 80% of all malaria infections were submicroscopic, with the ratio of submicroscopic to microscopic infection remaining stable over the 4-month follow-up period. Although the prevalence of malaria infection fluctuated over time, microscopically-detectable parasitemia was only found in children and adolescents, presumably reflecting their higher susceptibility to malaria infection. As well as temporal variation, the prevalence of malaria infection differed significantly between villages (from 1% to 19%), demonstrating a marked heterogeneity at micro-scales. Over the study period, Plasmodium vivax was the most commonly detected malaria parasite species, followed by P. malariae, and much less frequently P. falciparum. Consecutive blood samples from 859 out of the 981 studied Yanomami showed that malaria parasites were detected in only 8% of the previously malaria-positive individuals, with most of them young children (median age 3 yrs). Overall, our results show that molecular tools are more sensitive for the identification of malaria infection among the Yanomami, which is characterized by heterogeneous transmission, a predominance of low-density infections, circulation of multiple malaria parasite species, and a higher susceptibility in young children. Our findings are important for the design and implementation of the new strategic interventions that will be required for the elimination of malaria from isolated indigenous populations in Latin America.
url https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0230643
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