Question

Malignant tertian malaria is due to
(a)Plasmodium falciparum
(b) Plasmodium Vivax
(c) Plasmodium Ovale
(d) Plasmodium Malariae

Answer 1

This is a unicellular protozoan parasite of humans that causes the most dangerous form of malaria called malignant tertian malaria. The disease is characterized by the irregular recurrence of paroxysms and prolonged fever.

Complete answer:
Malignant tertian malaria occurs due to Plasmodium falciparum. The malarial parasite is transmitted through the bite of a female Anopheles mosquito and causes malaria’s most dangerous form, falciparum malaria. The intermediate host of P. falciparum is the human. In the body of the intermediate hosts, the asexual reproduction occurs, and female anopheline mosquitos are the definitive hosts harboring the sexual reproduction stage.

Additional Information: -Plasmodium falciparum assumes several different forms during its life cycle.
-P. falciparum does not have a fixed structure but undergoes continuous change during the course of its life cycle.
-The human-infective stage is sporozoites from the salivary gland of a mosquito.
-To become merozoites, the sporozoites grow and multiply in the liver.
-These merozoites attack the erythrocytes of RBCs to form trophozoites, schizonts, and gametocytes, during which the symptoms of malaria are produced.
-In the mosquito, the gametocytes undergo sexual reproduction to form a zygote, which turns into an ookinete.
-Ookinete forms oocytes from which sporozoites are formed.
-The gametocytes of P. falciparum parasites are elongated and crescent-shaped, with the help of which they are identified.
So, the correct answer is ’ Plasmodium falciparum ’.

Note: -Plasmodium falciparum is a unicellular protozoan parasite of humans and it is also the deadliest species of Plasmodium that causes malaria in humans.
-According to the report presented by the World Health Organization, P. falciparum is the deadliest parasite in humans, causing 405,000 deaths in the year 2018.
-Plasmodium falciparum is also associated with the development of blood cancer.