Plasmodium knowlesi, a malaria parasite that occurs naturally in long-tailed macaques, pig-tailed macaques, and banded leaf monkeys, is currently regarded as the fifth of the human malaria parasites. We aimed to investigate genetic diversity based on the cytochrome
c oxidase subunit I (
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Plasmodium knowlesi, a malaria parasite that occurs naturally in long-tailed macaques, pig-tailed macaques, and banded leaf monkeys, is currently regarded as the fifth of the human malaria parasites. We aimed to investigate genetic diversity based on the cytochrome
c oxidase subunit I (
COI) gene, detect
Plasmodium parasites, and screen for the voltage-gated sodium channel (
VGSC)-mutation-mediated knockdown resistance (
kdr) of
Anopheles mosquitoes in Ranong province, which is the most
P. knowlesi-endemic area in Thailand. One hundred and fourteen
Anopheles females belonging to eight species, including
An. baimaii (21.05%),
An. minimus s.s. (20.17%),
An. epiroticus (19.30%),
An. jamesii (19.30%),
An. maculatus s.s. (13.16%),
An. barbirostris A3 (5.26%),
An. sawadwongporni (0.88%), and
An. aconitus (0.88%), were caught in three geographical regions of Ranong province. None of the
Anopheles mosquitoes sampled in this study were infected with
Plasmodium parasites. Based on the sequence analysis of
COI sequences,
An. epiroticus had the highest level of nucleotide diversity (0.012), followed by
An. minimus (0.011). In contrast,
An. maculatus (0.002) had the lowest level of nucleotide diversity. The Fu’s
Fs and Tajima’s
D values of the
Anopheles species in Ranong were all negative, except the Tajima’s
D values of
An. minimus (0.077). Screening of
VGSC sequences showed no presence of the
kdr mutation of
Anopheles mosquitoes. Our results could be used to further select effective techniques for controlling
Anopheles populations in Thailand’s most
P. knowlesi-endemic area.
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