parasitology

• What is the Phylum that consists entirely of parasites affecting humans and animals?

  Apicomplexa
• What type of life cycles do organisms in the Phylum Apicomplexa have?

  Complex life cycles
• Do members of the Phylum Apicomplexa have free-living forms?


  No, they have no free-living forms
• Name an example of a parasite from the subclass Coccidiasina.

  Cryptosporidium
• What is the difference between definitive and intermediate hosts?

  Definitive hosts harbor adult parasites; intermediate hosts harbor larval stages
• Name an example of a parasite from the subclass Piroplasmasina.

  Babesia
• What is the role of the intermediate host in the life cycle of a parasite?

  It is where the parasite passes its larval stage
• What is the function of rhoptries in Apicomplexa?

  They help the parasite penetrate host cells
• What is the result of merogony in Apicomplexa?

  Production of many small merozoites
• What is the primary vector for Plasmodium transmission?

  Female Anopheles mosquito
• What are the symptoms of malaria?

  Fever, headache, muscular aches, vomiting
• How does the life cycle of Plasmodium differ from that of Cryptosporidium?


  Plasmodium has a complex life cycle with multiple hosts
• What is the role of sporozoites in the malaria life cycle?

  They invade hepatocytes and replicate
• What is the final step in the life cycle of Plasmodium?

  Sporozoites invade the salivary glands of mosquitoes
• What happens during sporogony in the Plasmodium life cycle?

  Oocysts undergo replication to produce sporozoites
• What are the three distinct replicative stages of malaria?

  1. Exo-erythrocytic schizogony (in liver)
  2. Erythrocytic schizogony (in blood)
  3. Sporogony (in mosquito)
• What triggers gametogenesis in Plasmodium?

  When a mosquito ingests gametocytes
• What is the diagnostic stage of Plasmodium in humans?

  Young trophozoite, often called 'ring form'
• What happens during the exo-erythrocytic schizogony stage of Plasmodium?

  Sporozoites replicate within hepatocytes
• What is the significance of hypnozoites in P. vivax and P. ovale?


  They can cause relapses by invading the bloodstream