QUESTION: Who found that malaria was caused by a mosquito? ANSWER: The man who first discovered that malaria was transmitted by mosquitoes was a British Army doctor called Ronald Ross. Working in India in 1897-1898, Ross demonstrated how malaria parasites could be transmitted first between a patient and a mosquito, and then between hosts via mosquitoes (this latter work was done using … [Read more...]
What does malaria cause?
QUESTION: What does malaria cause? ANSWER: Malaria is a disease. It is caused by tiny single-celled parasites called Plasmodium, which are transmitted through the bite of infected Anopheles mosquitoes. There are many symptoms that occur as a result of infection with malaria, namely fever, chills, headaches and nausea, among others. Malaria can be a very serious disease, especially if not … [Read more...]
When was malaria first found in humans?
QUESTION: When was the first case of malaria in humans discovered? What did the name malaria originate from? ANSWER: Malaria has been known to humans for thousands of years; its earliest record is from around 2700 BCE in an ancient Chinese medical text. The ancient Greeks, Egyptians and Indians also recorded cases of malaria and described its symptoms. However, the parasite that causes … [Read more...]
Who discovered the disease malaria?
QUESTION: Who discovered the malaria disease and when? ANSWER: Malaria has been known for thousands of years; there are written accounts of the disease, including a description of its symptoms, in ancient Chinese medical texts from 2700 BCE. The ancient Romans and Greeks also knew about malaria. However, the causes of the disease were only discovered in the 19th century. In 1880, a … [Read more...]
How do mosquitoes cause malaria?
QUESTION: How can the mosquito cause malaria? ANSWER: Actually, mosquitoes don't cause malaria themselves, they just transmit it from one person to another! The disease is actually caused by a tiny parasite, of the genus Plasmodium, several species of which infect humans. Part of the parasite's life cycle takes place in the human host, and the other part in the mosquito; it needs to go … [Read more...]
Malaria in Southern United States
QUESTION: Why is there not a prevalence of malaria in the southern United States when we are bitten almost daily by the "little beasts?" ANSWER: Malaria once was relatively common in the southern United States. Transmission used to be possible due to the favorable climatic conditions for the development both of the mosquito as well as the malaria parasite. Huge advances in the control and … [Read more...]
Does malaria spread from a person to another?
QUESTION: Can malaria spread from one person to another? ANSWER: Usually, no. In most cases, the malaria parasite has to first pass from a human host into a mosquito as the mosquito takes a blood meal, and then from the mosquito into another human via the mosquito's saliva. This severely limits the amount of person-to-person transmission that exists. In fact, the only mechanisms for … [Read more...]
Mosquitoes with Malaria
QUESTION: Do mosquitoes with malaria get sick like people do? ANSWER: That's a great question! As far as I know, the jury is still out in terms of what overall effect being infected with malaria has on mosquitoes, and to a large extent, it appears to vary due to lots of factors, such as the compatibility between the mosquito and the particular type of malaria parasite, the intensity of … [Read more...]