Dr.

Nakpil

II.1 Malaria

July 27, 2012

Objective:
To be able to know the different species of Plasmodium as well as different stages on their
Life cycle
INTRODUCTION
Classification
Kingdom: Protista
Suborder: Haemosporina
Family: Plasmodiidae
Genus: Plasmodium

Plasmodium
Vivax

Malariae

Falciparum

Sporozoa

LIFE CYCLE
ASEXUAL

SEXUAL

Host

Humans

Mosquito

Organ involved

Liver and erythrocytes

Gut and Abdominal wall

Mosquito inserts proboscis injects the plasmodium sporozoite sporozoite begin asexual
cycle pre erythrocytic development of merozoites repeat development of merozoite in
several cycles erythrocytic cycle penetrate erythrocytes ring develops which enlarges
to become a mature amoeboid trophozoite asexual multiplication burst RBC release
merozoites infect other cells
Cytoplasm
Chromatin

GENERAL FEATURES
Stains blue with Wrights or Giemsa
Stains red

Pigment
Granules
(hematin)

Transmission

Bite of Plasmodium infected female mosquito

Krish Justine

Do not stain
Golden brown
Darkbrown or black depending on the species
Hematin comes from the metabolism of hemoglobin by the
parasite

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II.1 Malaria
PARASITE SPECIES

P. falciparum

malignant tertian malariae

also known as blackwater fever
Confined in the tropics and subtropics
Double and even triple infections of red
Blood cell
Has accole forms (earliest stages do not
posses ring form)
Pigments rarely seen in forms normally
found in circulating blood
Infected red cells may develop Maurers
dots

P. vivax
various asexual life cycle may be seen
paroxysms follows somewhat synchronous
rupture of the majority of infected cell,
liberating merozoites which in turn infect
new red cells
with accolee forms
Infected cells noticeably enlarged and pale
and contains Schuffners dots ( can be
seen in red cell infected 15 to 24 hours)
Merozoites rupture infected cell at about 48
hours they are released to infected cells

Krish Krish Justine

TROPHOZOITES
Shape

Minute rings (with 2 small

chromatin dots)
Irregular outline

seen in young parasite

appear as minute blue disk

with a red nucleus lying
within pink cytoplasm of
the erythrocyte
Vacoule
forms in the blue cytoplasm
Majority of infected cells in early forms
Between 6-24 hours after the beginning of
the cycle it will grow to a size of infected
cell and granules of brownish pigment have
begun to appear within them
Mature trophozoite largely ceases its
amoeboid activity and become compact
Blood film
Giemsas
stain

SCHIZONTS
Schizogony does not usually take place in
peripheral blood
mature schizontsforms 8-3 merozoites
average about 24
Varies from 12 to 28 with different strains

Single nucleus divides repeatedly to give

rise to a total number of 12 to 24 nuclear
masses

GAMETOCYTES
Shape

Elongate or sausage
Crescent in outline
Pointed or blunt y rounded

seen in young parasite

Present

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II.1 Malaria
PARASITE SPECIES

P. malariae
asexual cycle 72 hours
ring forms are not readily distinguished
fron P. Vivax
as the parasite grows, it exhibits little
amoeboid activity
elongated in form, stretching part way or
entirely across the cell.
The infected cell is not enlarged
Average number of merozoites: 8; arrange
in a rosette, symmetrically around a central
mass of pigment
But more typically are irregular dispersed
within the mature schizont

P. ovale

TROPHOZOITES

SCHIZONTS
Results to the formation of 6-12
merozoites
Prior to schizogony, it nearly completely fill
the red cell
The red cell contains dust fine pale dots
called Ziemanns stipling
This stippling is only seen on heavily
stained slides
Contains average 8 merozoites

GAMETOCYTES
Shape
(young)

Shape(old)
Cytoplasm

Ovoid
Do not assume the
amoeboid , comma or
shallow forms
Compact; usually small
dots of nuclear material
Elongate mass of
cytoplasm : abundant
pigment

Difficult to distinguish from the the growing

trophozoites
When mature maybe slightly larger than
the mature trophozoites
Contain proportionately more pigment
than the trophozoites at all stages

Typically 4-12 merozoites produced

12-18 maybe formed with an average of
14- 16
Larger than those of P. Malariae

Ovoid in shape of the many red cells has

been found to be variable
Not so amoeboid in form as P. Vivax and
the nuclei in all stages are larger in
corresponding stages of that species
Pigment is scanty
Infected cells are enlarged pale and if
properly stained exhibit schuffners dots
The margin of infected cells are often
ragged and the cells distinctly elongated ,
ovoid or irregular in shape

Krish Krish Justine

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II.1 Malaria

Krish Krish Justine

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