Can anyone explain the life cycle of Plasmodium?
The life cycle of Plasmodium falciparum malaria parasite. Malaria is caused by infection with an obligate, intracellular protozoan parasite of the genus Plasmodium. Of the four species that infect humans (Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium vivax, Plasmodium ovale and Plasmodium malariae), it is P. falciparum that is responsible for virtually all deaths. The life cycle of Plasmodium spp. is complex and somewhat specific to the parasite species. (a) P. falciparum infection in humans begins when an infected Anopheles sp. mosquito takes a blood meal and injects infective sporozoites into the peripheral circulation. (b) Within minutes, these sporozoites invade hepatocytes in the liver and, over approximately one week, undergo asexual multiplication, producing tens of thousands of merozoite forms of the parasite. (c) When the infected hepatocyte ruptures, merozoites are released into the peripheral circulation. (d) The merozoites invade red blood cells (rbcs) and (e) complete another round of
