by Malaria Q&A
QUESTION
What is a malaria parasite?
ANSWER
A malaria parasite is a single-celled protozoan of the genus Plasmodium. These parasites have a complex life-cycle, which involves sexual reproduction in a mosquito vector, plus cycles of asexual reproduction and multiplication in a human host (or other animal – other primates, rodents, birds and reptiles can also be infected with Plasmodium parasites). A diagram of the life cycle is below, courtesy of CDC.
by Malaria Q&A
QUESTION
What are Gametocytes?
ANSWER
Gametocytes are the sexually reproductive form of the malaria parasite. They circulate in the blood of the human/mammal host and are picked up by the mosquito when it takes a blood meal.
Inside the mosquito, the gametocytes undergo sexual reproduction in the mosquito midgut, producing oocysts which attach to the midgut wall and produce sporozoites, which are the stage that are infective to humans when the mosquito takes another blood meal (the sporozoites are passed into the blood via the saliva of the mosquito).