Malaria and Parasite Classification Quiz

Malaria

• Malaria is a life-threatening parasitic disease transmitted by infected mosquitoes.
• Malaria is preventable and curable.

Parasites & Classification

• Endoparasites: organisms that live within a host, including:
  • Protozoa: single-celled, reproduce asexually, usually spread by insects
    • Sarcodina: use pseudopodia for movement, examples include Amoeba and Entamoeba
    • Mastigophora: flagellated, examples include Trichomonas and Trypanosoma
    • Ciliophora: have cilia for movement, an example is Vorticella
    • Sporozoa: non-motile, examples include Plasmodium which causes malaria
  • Helminths: multicellular worms visible to the naked eye
    • Nematode: round worms, an example is strongyloides
    • Platyhelminth: flatworms
• Ectoparasites: organisms that live on the external surface of a host, such as lice and ticks.

Plasmodium

• The Plasmodium genus includes several species that cause malaria in humans.
• Plasmodium species infect and destroy red blood cells (RBCs).
• Six main types are significant:
  • Plasmodium falciparum: most severe, responsible for the majority of deaths in Sub-Saharan Africa
  • Plasmodium vivax: most widely geographically distributed
  • Plasmodium ovale: similar to P.vivax but less common
  • Plasmodium malariae: similar to P.ovale
  • Plasmodium knowlesi: found in Southeast Asia, Malaysia, and Borneo.