INFECTIONS WITH BLOOD & TISSUE PROTOZOA
• Medically important blood and tissue protozoa
include parasites like;
– Plasmodium spp (malaria)
– Trypanosoma (sleeping sickness, Chagas disease),
– Leishmania (leishmaniasis),
– Toxoplasma gondii (toxoplasmosis),
– Babesia (babesiosis), and
– amoebae like Naegleria fowleri and Acanthamoeba
• They cause diseases affecting blood cells, the nervous
system, lymphatics, and other organs, often with complex
life cycles involving vectors or environmental exposure.
,• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agTDkqig
XOk
,• Disease Mechanisms & Importance
– Immune Complex Formation: Parasite antigens and host
antibodies can form complexes, triggering inflammation
and damage in kidneys and other tissues (e.g., malaria,
trypanosomiasis).
– Tissue Invasion: Organisms
like Toxoplasma and Naegleria directly invade crucial
tissues like the brain, causing severe neurological damage.
– Vector-Borne Transmission: Many rely on insect vectors
(mosquitoes, tsetse flies, sandflies, ticks) for spread.
– Environmental Exposure: Amoebae
like Naegleria and Acanthamoeba are free-living in soil and
water, leading to accidental infections.
, Organism Disease Insect Vector Primary Human Tissue Affected
Plasmodium spp. Malaria Female Anopheles mosquito Red blood cells, Liver
Leishmania spp. Leishmaniasis Sandfly Macrophages, Spleen, Liver,
Skin
Trypanosoma brucei Sleeping Sickness Tsetse fly Blood, Lymph, Brain
Trypanosoma cruzi Chagas Disease Reduviid (Kissing) bug Heart muscle, Neurons
Toxoplasma gondii Toxoplasmosis None (Oral ingestion) Brain, Eye, Muscle, Fetus
• Medically important blood and tissue protozoa
include parasites like;
– Plasmodium spp (malaria)
– Trypanosoma (sleeping sickness, Chagas disease),
– Leishmania (leishmaniasis),
– Toxoplasma gondii (toxoplasmosis),
– Babesia (babesiosis), and
– amoebae like Naegleria fowleri and Acanthamoeba
• They cause diseases affecting blood cells, the nervous
system, lymphatics, and other organs, often with complex
life cycles involving vectors or environmental exposure.
,• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agTDkqig
XOk
,• Disease Mechanisms & Importance
– Immune Complex Formation: Parasite antigens and host
antibodies can form complexes, triggering inflammation
and damage in kidneys and other tissues (e.g., malaria,
trypanosomiasis).
– Tissue Invasion: Organisms
like Toxoplasma and Naegleria directly invade crucial
tissues like the brain, causing severe neurological damage.
– Vector-Borne Transmission: Many rely on insect vectors
(mosquitoes, tsetse flies, sandflies, ticks) for spread.
– Environmental Exposure: Amoebae
like Naegleria and Acanthamoeba are free-living in soil and
water, leading to accidental infections.
, Organism Disease Insect Vector Primary Human Tissue Affected
Plasmodium spp. Malaria Female Anopheles mosquito Red blood cells, Liver
Leishmania spp. Leishmaniasis Sandfly Macrophages, Spleen, Liver,
Skin
Trypanosoma brucei Sleeping Sickness Tsetse fly Blood, Lymph, Brain
Trypanosoma cruzi Chagas Disease Reduviid (Kissing) bug Heart muscle, Neurons
Toxoplasma gondii Toxoplasmosis None (Oral ingestion) Brain, Eye, Muscle, Fetus
