When did malaria start?

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QUESTION

What year did malaria start?

ANSWER

Malaria first emerged as an infection of humans tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of years ago. The species of malaria that infect humans probably evolved from closely related malaria species that infect macaques (in the case of Plasmodium vivax) and gorillas (in the case of P. falciparum).

The earliest records from human history of malaria come from a Chinese medical parchment almost 5000 years ago, and it is believed the ancient Egyptians also recognised the symptoms of the disease. Written accounts of malaria also occur in ancient Roman and Greek texts, though the true causes of malaria were not discovered until the 19th century.

Who introduced malaria in which century?

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QUESTION

Who introduced malaria in which century, how does it cause malaria and what is the virus’ name?

ANSWER

Malaria wasn’t introduced; it has been evolving alongside humans for thousands, if not millions of years. The first known mention of malaria by humans is in an ancient Chinese medical text, from 2700 BCE (before common era). Other ancient people, such as the Romans and the Greeks, knew the symptoms of malaria and described it in writing.

Malaria is actually not caused by a virus, but a single-celled animal called a protozoan. The genus name of the protozoans that cause malaria is Plasmodium, and there are five main species that infect humans: P. falciparum, P. vivax, P. ovale, P. malariae and P. knowlesi.

The malaria parasites cause the disease by entering into red blood cells and multiplying; when they have reproduced, they burst out of the red blood cell, destroying it. The patient’s blood is therefore rapidly full of malaria parasites, their waste products, plus bits of destroyed red blood cell; this produces an extreme immune reaction which causes many of the symptoms of malaria. In infection with P. falciparum, the most deadly and severe kind, infection with the parasite causes red blood cells to sequester in tiny red blood cells within major organs, causing reduced oxygen flow and complications. When this occurs in the brain, the result is cerebral malaria, which can result in convulsions and even a coma.

Who discovered the disease malaria?

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QUESTION:

Who discovered the malaria disease and when?

ANSWER:

Malaria has been known for thousands of years; there are written accounts of the disease, including a description of its symptoms, in ancient Chinese medical texts from 2700 BCE. The ancient Romans and Greeks also knew about malaria.

However, the causes of the disease were only discovered in the 19th century. In 1880, a French surgeon called Charles Louis Alphonse Laveran stationed in Algeria was the first person to see the parasites that cause malaria in the blood of an infected person. Then, a few years later, in 1897/1898, a British army doctor called Ronald Ross discovered that mosquitoes transmitted the parasites between patients. This allowed for further clarification of the life cycle of malaria, and thus opened up the path for modern malaria research and control.