Plasmodium falciparum is a type of sporosis of the subjugation of Protozoa. This is a dangerous unicellular parasite, which is a carrier of a deadly disease.
The simplest: features of the organization
Let's start in order. The simplest animals are organisms whose body consists of one cell. They have the most primitive structure. However, they are all unique. Just think: one cell invisible to the naked eye is capable of fulfilling the functions of a whole organism. It moves, breathes, eats, multiplies - it displays all the properties of a living organism.
Due to the unique structure, unicellular organisms are found almost everywhere: in fresh and salt ponds, soil. There is also a large group of protozoa whose living environment is living creatures.
Plasmodium malaria is a type of organism that lives and feeds at the expense of others, causing the latter significant harm.
Parasitic protozoa
Parasitism is a form of coexistence of organisms of different species, in which one organism (parasite), for a long time, uses another (host) as a source of food and habitat.
Such groups are also found in multicellular animals. For example, roundworms are able to live and develop in the ducts of the human intestine. Thus, the host, despite the biological term, is not such in function.
As already mentioned, the malarial plasmodium is of the Sporoviki type. The most important property of representatives of this systematic unit is the method of reproduction. It is called schizogony or multiple division.
Its essence lies in the fact that not two daughter cells are formed from one cell, but 10–20. Due to this intensity, the Sporoviki type is numerous in terms of the number of individuals and species diversity.
Biology features
Malarial plasmodium (photo shows one of the stages of its development) is a multinucleated cell. An interesting fact is that its carrier is only a female mosquito. She needs blood as a protein source for laying and developing eggs.
At the stage of sexual reproduction, the parasite cell has an elongated curved shape. In its cytoplasm there are everything necessary for the life of the organelle: mitochondria, Golgi complex, EPS.
Life cycle
Plasmodium malaria is a type of organism with a complex life cycle that occurs with the change of generative and asexual generations.
In the process of development of the parasite, a change of hosts occurs - intermediate and final. In the first, asexual reproduction by division or only certain stages of development occurs. For malarial plasmodium, such is man.
First, the parasite enters the liver cells, where it actively divides. Further development occurs in red blood cells - red blood cells. At the same time, they are destroyed, and toxic waste products of the described parasite enter the body. Their action causes a person to have fever attacks. Therefore, malarial plasmodium belongs to the group of deadly protozoa.
A mosquito becomes a carrier of infection by drinking the blood of an infected person. In the intestine of the insect, sexual reproduction of the parasite occurs. Therefore, the mosquito is the ultimate host.
From a fertilized egg, many motile cells are formed, which over time accumulate in the digestive glands of the insect. During a bite, they enter the human blood. As a result, the complex life cycle of malarial plasmodium is repeated.
What is the danger of malaria?
Malarial plasmodium (photo shows an infected person) causes a dangerous disease. Toxins, which secrete a parasite in the process of life, provoke fever and periodic bouts of fever.
Depending on the type of plasmodium, it occurs every 24, 48 or 72 hours. At this time, red blood cells are destroyed and become unable to perform their main function - the transfer of oxygen to the cells of the whole body and carbon dioxide from them to the lungs. The result is anemia (anemia). A haggard, weakened by fever person may die as a result.
Signs and Prevention
Malaria mosquitoes predominantly live in the Asian and African tropics. Since a vaccine for this disease has not yet been created, the whole struggle is aimed at the destruction of vectors - insects of the genus Anopheles. This is done with the help of special toxic substances - insecticides. There is also special protection for humans - these are aerosols, creams, protective clothing, and mosquito nets.
Medicines against the parasite have a preventive effect. Doctors advise taking them a few weeks before departure to the zone of alleged infection. Such drugs can inhibit the synthesis of nucleic acids in the body, thereby destroying parasitic cells.
Leaving the zone of possible infection, it is necessary to continue taking the drug for several more weeks. However, despite the efforts of scientists and the possibilities of modern medicine, more than 2 million people die every year from malaria fever in the world.
In conclusion, we repeat that malarial plasmodium is of the Sporoviki type and is a unicellular parasitic organism with a complex development cycle. But despite the large number of known facts about the structural and vital features of this organism, scientists all over the world have yet to solve many puzzles in order to rid the planet of a deadly disease.