Plasmodium pessoai

"Plasmodium pessoai" is a parasite of the genus "Plasmodium".

Like all "Plasmodium" species "P. pessoai" has both vertebrate and insect hosts. The vertebrate hosts for this parasite are reptiles.

Taxobox
color = khaki
name = "Plasmodium pessoai"
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image_width =
regnum = Protista
phylum = Apicomplexa
classis = Aconoidasida
ordo = Haemosporida
familia = Plasmodiidae
genus = "Plasmodium"
species = "P. pessoai"
binomial = "Plasmodium pessoai"

Description

The parasite was first described by Ayala "et al" in 1978. Ayala S.C., Moreno-Robles E., Bolaños-Herrera, R. (1978) "Plasmodium pessoai" sp. n. procedentes de dos serpientes costarricenses. J. Parasitol. 64(2)330-335 ] The species is named after Dr Samuel B Pessoa - a parasitologist at the Instituto Butantan, São Paulo, Brazil.

Morphologically this species appears to be related to "Plasmodium aurulentum".

Geographical occurrence

This species is found in Costa Rica, Central America.

Clinical features and host pathology

This species is one of the three known to infect snakes: the other two species infecting snames are "Plasmodium wenyoni" and "Plasmodium tomodoni".

This species infects the rat snake ("Spilotes pullatus") and the bush master ("Lachesis muta").

The gametocytes are small and sausage shaped (10.4 x 4.6 micrometres)

Immature schizonts often contain a digestive vacuole.

Mature schizonts are spherical or bouquet-shaped and produce 22 - 32 merozoites. They may possess an intensely staining magenta or rose-coloured substance in the matrix of thesurrounding vacuole.

References