Hermine E. Smikle
Malaria is caused by Plasmodium, a microscopic protozoan. The organism enters the human body through the feeding bite of a female mosquito. The mosquito takes blood in order to obtain protein for egg production.
The life cycle of the protozoon is very complex:
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The mosquito bites the human. Its saliva introduces the organism into the human body. At this stage the protozoon is in its sporozoite form.
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2.
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In the human body the organism collects in the liver. There they invade the cells and multiply as merozoites. These merozoites are released into the blood stream. In the blood stream they use the red blood cells to multiply and produce gametocytes which are sexed. The gametocytes are carried in the blood stream until an uninfected mosquito feeds from the host.
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3.
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In the mosquito digestive system the sexed gametocytes mate to form a zygote and enter the wall of the insect's stomach where sporozoites are produced.
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The disease presents itself with fever, chills, and sweats as the merozoites are released from the liver. Nausea, vomiting and severe headache also accompany the reaction. In the process certain organs are damaged, and the destruction of the red blood cells causes the urine to turn either dark red or black.