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Where do Plasmodium sporozoites go after entering a person's bloodstream?
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malaria
Life cycle of a malaria parasite.
After entering a person's bloodstream via the bite of an infected Anopheles mosquito, Plasmodium sporozoites are carried by the blood to the liver.12
Once in the liver, the sporozoites enter liver parenchyma cells, where they mature into forms known as schizonts. Over the course of one to two weeks, each schizont multiplies into thousands of merozoites, which eventually break out of the liver and reenter the bloodstream to infect red blood cells. In some cases, such as with P. vivax and P. ovale, certain sporozoites may remain in the liver in a dormant "hypnozoite" stage for months or years before emerging to cause a relapse of the disease.12