Investigating artemisinin resistance in Nigerian isolates of Plasmodium falciparum

This study aimed to characterize malaria parasites for early signs of artemisinin resistance. A nuanced understanding of these genetic mechanism of artemisinin resistance is crucial for effective strategies to mitigate resistance and sustain the efficacy of ACTs. P. falciparum ubiquitin-specific protease 1 (UBP1) gene plays a role in protein degradation and regulation within the parasite. UBP1 influences the stability and turnover of proteins in the parasite. This is a potential mechanism through which parasites can withstand the rapid action of artemisinin treatment. In 2021, during a field assessment of artemisinin-based combination treatment of malaria in Nigeria, we collected 60 P. falciparum isolates for UBP1 sequencing. The sequence data are contained in this repo.