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ANTI–PLASMODIUM VIVAX DUFFY BINDING PROTEIN ANTIBODIES MEASURE EXPOSURE TO MALARIA IN THE BRAZILIAN AMAZON

Plasmodium vivax Duffy binding protein (DBP) is functionally important in the erythrocyte invasion process and provides a logical target for vaccine-mediated immunity. In the current study, we demonstrated that DBP is naturally immunogenic in different populations of the Brazilian Amazon, and the proportions of DBP IgG positive subjects increased with exposure to malaria, reaching a peak in those subjects with long-term exposure (> 15 years) in the Amazon area. This profile of antibody response was significantly different from the one observed for the P. vivax merozoite surface protein 1 (MSP1₁₉), which was relatively uniform in areas with markedly different levels of malaria transmission. In a small sample of adults with symptomless P. vivax infection, we could not detect any significant correlation between antibodies against these P. vivax proteins and asymptomatic infection. Our study provided an additional insight by demonstrating cumulative exposure as a determinant that acts independently of host age in generation of anti-DBP IgG response.

Received August 17, 2004. Accepted for publication December 21, 2004.

Acknowledgment: The authors thank Dr. Irene Soares, Universidade de São Paulo, SP, Brazil, for kindly providing the recombinant protein rMSP1₁₉.

Financial support: This work was supported by the UNICEF/UNDP/ Word Bank/WHO Special Program for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases (TDR), the Brazilian National Research Council (CNPq), and Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG).

Authors’ addresses: Isabela P. Cerávolo, Cristiana F. A. Brito, Antoniana U. Krettli, and Luzia H. Carvalho, Laboratório de Malária, Centro de Pesquisas René Rachou, FIOCRUZ, Av. Augusto de Lima 1715, CP 1743, 30190-002 Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil. Oscar Bruña-Romero and Érika M. Braga, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos 6627, 31270-901 Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil. Cor J. F. Fontes, Hospital Júlio Muller, Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso, Rua L s/n, Jardim Alvorada, 78070-150 Cuiabá, MT, Brazil. José M. Souza, Instituto Evandro Chagas, Av. Almirante Barroso 492, 66090-000 Belém, PA, Brasil. John H. Adams, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, P.O. Box 369, Notre Dame, IN 46556-0369.

Reprint requests: Luzia H. Carvalho, Laboratório de Malária, Centro de Pesquisas René Rachou, FIOCRUZ, Av. Augusto de Lima 1715, 30190-002, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil, Telephone: 55-31-32953566, Fax: 55-31-32953115, E-mail: lhcarvalho{at}cpqrr.fiocruz.br.