Hypnozoite

A hypnozoite is the dormant stage of some malaria pathogens from the Plasmodium genus .

Hypnozoites in the life cycle of plasmodia

Plasmodium ovale and Plasmodium vivax form hypnozoites. This is a dormant stage in which the parasitecan remainin the hepatocytes (liver cells) forweeks to yearswithout causing clinical symptoms of malaria. Awakened by a previously unknown signal, these stages begin to multiply, namely exoerythrocytic schizogony , and can thus lead to a malaria relapse long after an initial infection.

See also

• Parasites of humans
• Plasmodia

swell

• FB Cogswell: The hypnozoite and relapse in primate malaria. In: Clin Microbiol Rev. Volume 5, No. 1, Jan 1992, pp. 26-35. PMID 1735093