Analysis of genetic diversity at the iron-containing superoxide dismutase locus in Plasmodium falciparum wild isolates

In order to investigate the genetic diversity of iron-containing superoxide dismutase (FeSOD) from Plasmodium falciparum, a potential anti-malarial th erapeutic target, we cloned and sequenced Plasmodium FeSOD from 26 blood sa mples from non-infected patients. Fifteen clones had the same nucleotide se quence as that of the FeSOD gene of the P. falciparum strain HB3 cultivated in vitro. The other 11 clones presented mutations responsible for punctual amino acid changes which did not modify key residues for the function or t he structure of the enzyme. The high sequence conservation between FeSOD fr om the isolates confirms that this enzyme could represent a therapeutic tar get. (C) 1999 Federation of European Microbiological Societies, Published b y Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.