Assessment of Plasmodium falciparum anti-malarial drug resistance markers in pfcrt and pfmdr1 genes in isolates from Honduras and Nicaragua, 2018–2021

BACKGROUND: Central America and the island of Hispaniola have set out to eliminate malaria by 2030. However, since 2014 a notable upturn in the number of cases has been reported in the Mosquitia region shared by Nicaragua and Honduras. In addition, the proportion of Plasmodium falciparum malaria cases has increased significantly relative to vivax malaria. Chloroquine continues to be the first-line drug to treat uncomplicated malaria in the region. The objective of this study was to evaluate the emergence of chloroquine resistant strains of P. falciparum using a genetic approach. Plasmodium vivax populations are not analysed in this study. METHODS: 205 blood samples from patients infected with P. falciparum between 2018 and 2021 were analysed. The pfcrt gene fragment encompassing codons 72–76 was analysed. Likewise, three fragments of the pfmdr1 gene were analysed in 51 samples by nested PCR and sequencing. RESULTS: All samples revealed the CVMNK wild phenotype for the pfcrt gene and the N86, Y184F, S1034C, N1042D, D1246 phenotype for the pfmdr1 gene. CONCLUSIONS: The increase in falciparum malaria cases in Nicaragua and Honduras cannot be attributed to the emergence of chloroquine-resistant mutants. Other possibilities should be investigated further. This is the first study to report the genotype of pfmdr1 for five loci of interest in Central America. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12936-021-03977-8.