Protozoa

Plasmodium

Malaria
 Definitions in Medical parasitology

1- Host: “the organism in, or on, which the parasite lives and
causes harm”

2- Definitive host: “the organism in which the adult or sexually

mature stage of the parasite lives”

3- Intermediate host: “the organism in which the parasite lives

during a period of its development only”

4- Vector: “a living carrier (e.g.an arthropod) that transports a

pathogenic organism from an infected to a non-infected host”.
A typical example is the female Anopheles mosquito that
transmits malaria
Malaria,
the most frequent tropical parasitosis,

The infection is caused by plasmodia:

(Plasmodium vivax,
P. ovale,
P. malariae,
P. falciparum)
 Transmission
• Malarial parasites can be transmitted
by: female Anopheles mosquito
head

Chest

ABDOMEN
•Head of female Anopheles:
note not very bushy antennae;
long palps with white bands;
proboscis & compound eye.

Head of male Anopheles:

note bushy antennae and palps
with knobs
 Life cycle
• The life cycle of malaria includes
phases of:
– asexual multiplication in the human
host and
– sexual reproduction and formation of
sporozoites in the vector, a female
Anopheles mosquito
 Life Cycle of Plasmodium
• When an infected female anopheles mosquito bites, the parasites are injected into the
human body through the saliva of the mosquito. On an average 5 to 10 uni-nucleated
sporozoites are injected. Within 30 minutes these sporozoites migrate to the liver and invade
hepatocytes (liver cells) and develop into schizonts.
• The schizonts multiply in the liver cells until there is no space left. Within one week of
entering the liver cell, mature liver stage schizonts rupture spilling merozoites into the blood
stream. Their numbers could range between 10,000 and 40,000. These merozoites in the
blood stream invade circulating erythrocytes and develop into a trophozoite, secreting
proteins that form knobs on the erythrocyte membrane. With the help of these knobs it
attaches itself to the capillary wall affecting the microcirculation. On maturity the erythrocyte
ruptures and 8 to 32 merozoites spill out from each one which in turn invade other
erythrocytes which have been unaffected till now.
• The entire process of the merozoite invading the erythrocyte to maturity to ultimate rupture
of erythrocyte takes approximately 48 hours. This is one asexual life cycle of the schizont. The
symptoms of malaria – chills – fever – sweating – along with nausea, vomiting and headache
occur during the blood stage.
• If left untreated it may lead to severe anaemia, convulsion, coma and ultimately death. Some
erythrocytic-stage parasites develop into sexual stage parasites called gametocytes. The bite
of another female anopheles mosquito takes in these gametocytes along with its blood meal
and the process of transmission to another human is repeated.
 Diagnosis
• Etiological confirmation of a clinical diagnosis is
obtained by detecting malarial parasites in the
blood.
• examined microscopically in both thick and thin
blood smears following Giemsa staining
•

Thick blood
smears

thin blood
smears
•Thick Smear:
•A big drop of blood from finger
or heel prick is collected on a
clean grease-free slide and
spread with the corner of
another clean slide to form a
uniformly thick smear about
1cm square. The smear is dried
in a horizontal position, thick
smear have to be
dehaemoglobinised before
staining with Giemsa stain.
•Thick smears have the
advantage that a larger quantity Thick blood
of blood can be tested.
Thin smear:
A thin smear is prepared from
finger prick, or in infants from
heel prick blood. A small drop is
spread on a clean grease-free
slide with a coverslid to give a
uniform smear ideally a single
cell thick. After drying the smear
is fixed in methanol, and staining
with Giemsa.
It displays blood cells and
parasites clearly after staining thin blood
smears
with Giemsa.
 Plasmodium vivax
• Infected erythrocyte often
larger than normal,
• often with red Schüffner's
dots
•Young trophozoite rings½
to 1/3 erythrocyte
diameter,
• vacuole large,
• plasmic fringe narrow
•pigment finer dispersed
diffusely
•prefer reticulocytes
 Plasmodium falciparum

• size and form of Infected

erythrocyte: normal,
• multiple infection
• rarely: Maurer's clefts
• Small rings; 1/3 to 1/5 of
erythrocyte diameter,
• binuclear form , frequent,
• narrow plasmic fringe
• vacuole small
• infects younger and older
erythrocytes