Phenotypic and genotypic characterisation of drug-resistant Plasmodium vivax

A review published in Trends in Parasitology and co-authored by Ric Price and colleagues from the Menzies School of Health Research and Queensland Institute of Medical Research, Australia highlights the need to review clinical trial design to detect early signs of Plasmodium vivax resistance. The authors call for measurement of in vivo drug concentrations and rich sampling to identify changes in parasite clearance times. The review explores recent developments in Plasmodium vivax clinical trial analysis, ex vivo drug-susceptibility assays, and current approaches to identify molecular markers of drug resistance.