Plasmodium vivax
( MALARIAL PARASITE)
And Human Pathogen
Dr Nancy
Assistant Professor
Department of Zoology
PGGCG 42, Chandigarh
The Malarial parasite
The most interesting sporozoan genus is plasmodium
Because of their malaria causing abilities , these species commonly
referred as malarial parasites
All resides in the RBC
Mosquitoes are the vectors
4 species are known to cause different types of malaria
P. vivax, P. ovale, P. malariae and P. falciparium
Geographically distributed in tropical and temperate countries
P. vivax is most commonly distributed and prevails in the
temperate regions of the world.
Life Cycle of P. vivax
• P. Vivax is the most common of the human infecting malaria fever
parasites.
• Causes benign tertian or vivax malaria, characterized by a 48 h
cycle b/w first fever and subsequent chills and fever.
• Hosts: diagenetic
a. Man: ( secondary Host)
asexual cycle in two phases
First in liver – liver schizogony
Second in RBC – erythrocytic schizogony and forms gametes
b. Mosquito: (Primary Host, definitive Host, Vector)
Sexual cycle is completed in female anopheles
It involves gametogony and sporogony
Asexual cycle of P. vivax in man
[1]. Infection
• Anopheles bite resulting in the inoculation of thousands of sporozoites
along with saliva into the persons body (victim)
[2]. Sporozoites
• Infective form of parasite
• Small, spindle shaped measuring about 11-12 µ in length and 0.5-1 µ
in width
[3]. Liver Schizogony
• After 30m of infection, sporozoites invades hepatic tissues and multiply
by schizogony in two phases (pre and exo-erythrocytic)
a) Pre-erythrocytic phase
• Sporozoite becomes cryptozoite in hepatic cells and becomes spherical
and non-pigmented schizont.
• Undergo multiple fission (schizogony) and forms numeros uninucleate
cryptomerozoites
• At the end of phase, hepatic cell bursts and cryptomerozoites are
liberated.
b) Exo-erythrocytic phase
• Cryptomerozoites enter new liver cells and becomes metacryptozoites
• Undergo similar schizogony and produces metacryptomerozoites.
[4]. Erythrocytic schizogony
• Micro metacryptomerozoites invades RBC and starts erythrocytic
schizogony and includes following stages:
a) Tropozoite stage
• Inside RBC, micro metacryptomerozoites becomes rounded and
modified into trophozoite.
b) Signet ring stage
• Trophozoite grows, develops vacuole and clinically referred as
signet ring stage.
c) Amoeboid stage
• Meanwhile signet stage develops into active amoeboid trophozoite
• At this stage, samle red eosinophilic granules appear in the
cytoplasm –schuffners granules
d) Schizont
• Amoeboid trophozoite after feeding becomes rounded, grows in
size and becomes schizont
• It undergoes schizogony and forms merozoites
• One erythrocytic cycle takes 48h
[5]. Post-erythrocytic schizogony
• Sometimes merozoites reach the liver and undergoes schizogonic
development in the liver cells –post-erythrocytic schizogony.
[6]. Formation of gametes
• Merozoites increases in size to become rounded gametocytes.
• Male – microgametocyte and female- magagametocyte
• Gametocytes donot devide but remain as intracellular parasite
until they either die or ingested by vector
Sexual cycle of P. vivax in man
[1]. Ingestion by mosquito
• Female anopheles gets the infection by sucking the blood of infected
person
• RBC are digested and gametocytes are liberated and lodged into the
cavity of the gut.
[2]. Gametogony
• Development of gametes (Haploids) from gametocyte – gametogony/
gametogenesis.
• Gamtes are of two types
a) Microgametes
• Male or microgamete undergoes exflagellation in the midgut of mosquito
• Each nucleus divides by mitosis and produce 6-8 haploid daughter and
assemble at periphery
• Cytoplasm outgrows into long thin flagella like projection and later these
projections break away as mature male gamete
b) Megagametes
• Female megagametocyte undergo some reorganisationa nd becomes a
female gamete, which is ready for fertilization.
[3]. Fertilization
• Megagamete gives out a cytoplasmic projection – fertilization cone.
• Microgamete attached to this cone and transfer its nucleus to
megagamete
• Fertilization or syngamy takes place
• Diploid zygote forms
[4]. Ookinete
• After sometime zygote becomes active and shows gliding moment and is
k/as ookinete
• It measures about 15-22 micron in length and 3 micron in width.
• It attaches itself to peritrophic membrane of gut.
[5]. Encystment
• Ookinete penetrates through walls of midgut, becomes spherical and
begins enyst.
• The encysted zygote – oocyst / sporont
[6]. Sporogony
• Oocyst enters into a phase of asexual multiplication- sporogony
• Firstly divides by meosis and then by mitosis and forms enormous
haploid nuclei surrounded by cytoplasmic masses
• The daughter nuclei arrange themselves along the margin of
cytoplasmic masses and later forms slender finger like processes
having single nuclei in each
• In this way about 10,000 minute slender and sickle bodies are
formed-sporozoites .
• When sporozoite matures oocyst ruptures and liberated into
haeomocoel later penetrates into salivary glands
• Whole sexual cycle completes into 0-12 days
• Now mosquito becomes infective
Pathogenesis of malarial parasite
Symptoms of malaria first appear several
days after the infection of the parasite.
This time – incubation period
Each attack of fever shows three stages:
1. Cold Stage
• At the onset of malaria patent suffers
from severe shaking chill.
• Cold stage lasts for 20 min
2. Hot stage
• As the chill subsides, the body temp rises
as high as 106°F. and lasts for 1-4 h.
3. Sweating stage
• As the temp lowers down, patent sweats
profusely.
• Fever comes down and temperature
becomes normal
Malaria fever occurs when schizont in RBC bursts and set free
their merozoites and malarial pigment haemozoin in the plasma.
Anemia is inevitable due to:
• Destruction of RBC
• Infected RBC become more fragile and rupture easily
• Parasite produce haemolysin- brings haemolysis
• In chronic case- spleen becomes enlarged
Control of Malaria
Control Measures falls into three categories:
1. Elimination or destruction of vector
2. Prophylaxis (prevention of infection)
3. Treatment of infected patents
