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Direct Comparison of Standard and Ultrasensitive PCR for the Detection of Plasmodium falciparum from Dried Blood Spots in Bagamoyo, Tanzania.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Markwalter, CF; Ngasala, B; Mowatt, T; Basham, C; Park, Z; Loya, M; Muller, M; Plowe, C; Nyunt, M; Lin, JT
Published in: The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene
February 2021

Ultrasensitive PCR used in low-transmission malaria-endemic settings has revealed a much higher burden of asymptomatic infections than that detected by rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) or standard PCR, but there is limited evidence as to whether this is the case in higher transmission settings. Using dried blood spots (DBS) collected among 319 schoolchildren in Bagamoyo, Tanzania, we found good correlation (Pearson's R = 0.995) between Plasmodium falciparum parasite densities detected by a DNA-based 18s rRNA real-time PCR (qPCR) and an RNA-based ultrasensitive reverse transcriptase (RT)-PCR (usPCR) for the same target. Whereas prevalence by usPCR was higher than that found by qPCR (37% versus 32%), the proportion of additionally detected low-density infections (median parasite density < 0.050 parasites/µL) represented an incremental increase. It remains unclear to what extent these low-density infections may contribute to the infectious reservoir in different malaria transmission settings.

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Published In

The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene

DOI

EISSN

1476-1645

ISSN

0002-9637

Publication Date

February 2021

Volume

104

Issue

4

Start / End Page

1371 / 1374

Related Subject Headings

  • Tropical Medicine
  • Tanzania
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 18S
  • Prevalence
  • Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • Plasmodium falciparum
  • Male
  • Malaria, Falciparum
  • Humans
  • Female
 

Citation

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MLA
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Markwalter, C. F., Ngasala, B., Mowatt, T., Basham, C., Park, Z., Loya, M., … Lin, J. T. (2021). Direct Comparison of Standard and Ultrasensitive PCR for the Detection of Plasmodium falciparum from Dried Blood Spots in Bagamoyo, Tanzania. The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 104(4), 1371–1374. https://doi.org/10.4269/ajtmh.20-1233
Markwalter, Christine F., Billy Ngasala, Tonelia Mowatt, Christopher Basham, Zackary Park, Mwajabu Loya, Meredith Muller, Christopher Plowe, Myaing Nyunt, and Jessica T. Lin. “Direct Comparison of Standard and Ultrasensitive PCR for the Detection of Plasmodium falciparum from Dried Blood Spots in Bagamoyo, Tanzania.The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 104, no. 4 (February 2021): 1371–74. https://doi.org/10.4269/ajtmh.20-1233.
Markwalter CF, Ngasala B, Mowatt T, Basham C, Park Z, Loya M, et al. Direct Comparison of Standard and Ultrasensitive PCR for the Detection of Plasmodium falciparum from Dried Blood Spots in Bagamoyo, Tanzania. The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene. 2021 Feb;104(4):1371–4.
Markwalter, Christine F., et al. “Direct Comparison of Standard and Ultrasensitive PCR for the Detection of Plasmodium falciparum from Dried Blood Spots in Bagamoyo, Tanzania.The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, vol. 104, no. 4, Feb. 2021, pp. 1371–74. Epmc, doi:10.4269/ajtmh.20-1233.
Markwalter CF, Ngasala B, Mowatt T, Basham C, Park Z, Loya M, Muller M, Plowe C, Nyunt M, Lin JT. Direct Comparison of Standard and Ultrasensitive PCR for the Detection of Plasmodium falciparum from Dried Blood Spots in Bagamoyo, Tanzania. The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene. 2021 Feb;104(4):1371–1374.

Published In

The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene

DOI

EISSN

1476-1645

ISSN

0002-9637

Publication Date

February 2021

Volume

104

Issue

4

Start / End Page

1371 / 1374

Related Subject Headings

  • Tropical Medicine
  • Tanzania
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 18S
  • Prevalence
  • Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • Plasmodium falciparum
  • Male
  • Malaria, Falciparum
  • Humans
  • Female