Explain the events which oceur within a female Anopheles mosquito after it has sucked blood from a malaria patient.
Ans.
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Ingestion: Female Anopheles mosquito feeds on blood containing malaria parasites (gametocytes) from a malaria-infected individual during a blood meal.
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Digestion: Blood meal passes into the mosquito’s midgut, where digestive enzymes break down the blood components.
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Gametocyte Activation: In the midgut, gametocytes mature into male and female gametes (gametogenesis) upon exposure to mosquito digestive enzymes.
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Fertilization: Male and female gametes fuse to form zygotes in the midgut, forming ookinetes.
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Penetration: Ookinetes penetrate the midgut wall and develop into oocysts.
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Sporogony: Within oocysts, sporozoites multiply through asexual reproduction (sporogony).
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Release: Mature sporozoites are released from oocysts into the mosquito’s hemolymph.
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Migration: Sporozoites migrate to the mosquito’s salivary glands and await transmission to a new host during subsequent blood feeding.
