Question

(a) Why do the symptoms of malaria not appear in a person immediately after being bitten by an infected female Anopheles? Give one reason. Explain when and how do the symptoms of the disease would appear.
 

Hint:

The incubation period of malaria allows the parasite to multiply in liver cells before invading red blood cells, causing symptoms.

Answer 1

- A delay in symptom onset occurs because sporozoites require time to replicate within liver cells prior to infecting erythrocytes.
- The manifestation of symptoms such as pyrexia, rigors, and diaphoresis is triggered by the parasite's lysis of red blood cells and the subsequent release of toxic substances into the circulatory system.