The Duffy blood group is one of the many human blood groups, and Duffy blood types differ in the structure of the Duffy glycoprotein on the surface of the red blood cell. Individuals with a genetic mutation that means they do not have the Duffy glycoprotein at all, referred to as Duffy negative individuals, tend to be resistant to the Plasmodium vivax parasite (one of the two major malaria parasites). Duffy negativity is very common in sub-Saharan Africa, and rarely found in individuals outside this region.
Our work includes mapping the distribution of the common Duffy genetic variants, mapping the distribution of people who are Duffy negative and estimating the impact of Duffy negativity when we estimate the population at risk of Plasmodium vivax malaria infection.