Allelic Forms of Merozoite Surface Protein-3 in Plasmodium falciparum Isolates From Southeast of Iran

Background: genetic diversity has provided plasmodium falciparum with the potential capacity of avoiding the immune response, and possibly supported the natural selection of drug or vaccine-resistant parasites. merozoite surface protein-3 (msp-3) has been used to develop vaccines and investigate the genetic diversity regarding p. falciparum malaria in iran.objectives: the main goal of this study was to analyze the polymorphic antigen msp-3 genes across southeast of iran among four different districts, to identify the differences in the allele frequency and genetic diversity.materials and methods: nested polymerase chain reaction amplification was used to determine polymorphisms of n-terminal region of the msp-3 gene. a total of 85 microscopically positive p. falciparum infected individuals from southeast of iran were included in this study.results: of the 85 confirmed p. falciparum samples obtained from four different districts, 72 were successfully scored for msp-3.the msp-3 allele classes (k1 and 3d7 types) showed comparable prevalence in all districts. overall frequencies of k1 and 3d7 allele classes were 94.5 % for both.conclusions: since no study has yet looked at the extent of p. falciparum msp-3 in this geographic region, these data can be helpful to support development of a vaccine based on msp-3 against malaria. there should be a comparative analysis in different seasonal peaks to indicate the allelic polymorphism of msp-3 over a period.