Malaria

Grace Bean

Mrs. Cunningham

20 February 2014

English

Malaria

For several years a deadly and horrific parasite has taken over the bodies of not only many adults but also children all over the world called Malaria. Malaria is a parasite that is transmitted through the bite of a female Anopheles mosquito.(The Gale Encyclopedia of Science) When the parasite enters the human body it travels in to the liver where it reproduces and forms clumps. Overtime the clumps burst and the new parasites find their way into blood cells. The Plasmodium parasite has four different species ( vivax, malanae, falciparum, and ovale) that is capable of taking numerous forms in the host it affects. Malaria is a disease that has been researched for many years based on side effects and symptoms in order to find prevention methods and/or a cure. (World of Health)

Malaria has been a well-known researched disease for centuries dating back to Ancient Greek, Roman, and Hebrew writings. It has also been found in Chinese and Indian medical chronicles. In 1880 Alphonse Lauren was the first to observe that a parasite had caused the illness of a malaria infected patient. (The Gale Encyclopedia Of Science). However, Camillo Golgi discovered the parasite itself and was able to identify the life cycle it had on its host. Then, many years later, Patrick Manson found the source of the parasite also known as the Anopheles mosquito. As a result, this discovery ended the thought that malaria was airborne from poisonous vapors. (Malaria)

The study of Malaria has not came to a halt but has continued on into the twenty-first century. Research has now moved on into the direction of finding not only an effective cure but also one that is affordable. Statistics show that most malaria cases occur in poverty stricken regions such as Sub-Saharan Africa where people do not have the money to treat themselves and their children for the parasite. As a result, that causes the number of malaria cases to rise...