What are the 4 species of genus Plasmodium?

Four species have long been known to cause malaria in humans: Plasmodium falciparum, P. vivax, P. ovale, and P. malariae.

What is the deadliest Plasmodium?

Plasmodium falciparum
Plasmodium falciparum is the most deadly of the human malaria parasites. The particular virulence of this species derives from its ability to subvert the physiology of its host during the blood stages of its development.

Which species of Plasmodium is malignant?

Plasmodium falciparum, the causative agent of malignant malaria, is among the most severe human infectious diseases. The closest known relative of P. falciparum is a chimpanzee parasite, Plasmodium reichenowi, of which one single isolate was previously known.

What are the 5 types of malaria parasites?

Five species of Plasmodium (single-celled parasites) can infect humans and cause illness:

  • Plasmodium falciparum (or P. falciparum)
  • Plasmodium malariae (or P. malariae)
  • Plasmodium vivax (or P. vivax)
  • Plasmodium ovale (or P. ovale)
  • Plasmodium knowlesi (or P. knowlesi)

Is Plasmodium a virus?

The Plasmodium parasite that causes malaria is neither a virus nor a bacteria – it is a single-celled parasite that multiplies in red blood cells of humans as well as in the mosquito intestine.

Is Plasmodium an animal?

Plasmodium is a genus of unicellular eukaryotes that are obligate parasites of vertebrates and insects. The life cycles of Plasmodium species involve development in a blood-feeding insect host which then injects parasites into a vertebrate host during a blood meal….

Plasmodium
Genus: Plasmodium Marchiafava & Celli, 1885

Which species of malaria is most serious one?

There are 5 parasite species that cause malaria in humans, and 2 of these species – Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax – pose the greatest threat.

Can Plasmodium infect animals?

Malaria is a mosquito-borne disease of humans and other vertebrates caused by protozoa of the genus Plasmodium. Approximately 200 species of mammals, reptiles and birds are potential host to the parasite. Primates represent more than half of the host species [1].

Which organ is most affected by malaria?

Beyond the brain, the lungs are the most affected organ in severe malaria. Lung dysfunction occurs in 20% of all cases of adults with falciparum [3] or vivax [27] severe malaria.

How many species of Plasmodium are there in humans?

There are approximately 156 named species of Plasmodium which infect various species of vertebrates. Four species are considered true parasites of humans, as they utilize humans almost exclusively as a natural intermediate host: P. falciparum, P. vivax, P. ovale and P. malariae.

What are the ring forms of Plasmodium falciparum?

Ring-form trophozoites of P. falciparum in thick and a thin blood smear. Ring-form trophozoites (rings) of Plasmodium falciparum are often thin and delicate, measuring on average 1/5 the diameter of the red blood cell.

What kind of ring does Plasmodium knowlesi have?

Early ring-form trophozoites (rings) of P. knowlesi are similar to P. falciparum, as rings may show double chromatin dots. Appliqué forms may appear, as well as rectangular rings harboring one or more accessory chromatin dots. Red blood cells may also be multiply-infected.

What kind of ring does Plasmodium malariae have?

Plasmodium malariae Ring-form trophozoites of P. malariae in thick and think blood smears. Ring-form trophozoites have one (rarely two) chromatin dots and a cytoplasm ring that tends to be thicker than P. falciparum .