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Protozoan infections are responsible for diseases that affect many different types of organisms, including plants, animals, and some marine life. Many of the most prevalent and deadly human diseases are caused by a protozoan infection, including African sleeping sickness , amoebic dysentery , and malaria .
Medical parasitology is concerned with three major groups of parasites: parasitic protozoa, helminths, and parasitic arthropods. [2] Parasitic diseases are thus considered those diseases that are caused by pathogens belonging taxonomically to either the animal kingdom, or the protozoan kingdom. [4]
Main article: Human parasite Endoparasites Protozoan organisms Common name of organism or disease Latin name (sorted) Body parts affected Diagnostic specimen Prevalence Source/Transmission (Reservoir/Vector) Granulomatous amoebic encephalitis and Acanthamoeba keratitis (eye infection) Acanthamoeba spp. eye, brain, skin culture worldwide contact lenses cleaned with contaminated tap water ...
Major groups of parasites include protozoans (organisms having only one cell) and parasitic worms (helminths). Of these, protozoans, including cryptosporidium, microsporidia, and isospora, are most common in HIV-infected persons. Each of these parasites can infect the digestive tract, and sometimes two or more can cause infection at the same time.
Microorganisms causing diseases that characteristically are waterborne prominently include protozoa and bacteria, many of which are intestinal parasites, or invade the tissues or circulatory system through walls of the digestive tract. Various other waterborne diseases are caused by viruses.
Human parasites are divided into endoparasites, which cause infection inside the body, and ectoparasites, which cause infection superficially within the skin. The cysts and eggs of endoparasites may be found in feces , which aids in the detection of the parasite in the human host while also providing the means for the parasitic species to exit ...
Malaria is caused by a protozoan called Plasmodium falciparum. P. falciparum parasites are transmitted mainly by the Anopheles gambiae complex in rural Africa. [54] In just this area, P. falciparum infections comprise an estimated 200 million clinical cases and 1 million annual deaths. 75% of individuals affected in this region are children. [57]
Many protozoan pathogens are human parasites, causing serious diseases such as malaria, giardiasis, toxoplasmosis, and sleeping sickness. Some of these protozoa have two-phase life cycles, alternating between proliferative stages (e.g., trophozoites ) and resting cysts , enabling them to survive harsh conditions.