malaria
The definitions used in this glossary of terminology either have been provided by the authors of the articles, or have been extracted wholly or in part, or paraphrased from the following sources: The American Medical Association Encyclopedia of Medicine, Charles B. Clayman, MD, Medical Editor, Random House, New York, 1989; Biotechnology from A to Z, 2d Edition, William Bains, Oxford University Press, New York, New York, 2002; A Dictionary of Genetics, 6th Edition, Robert C. King and William D. Stansfield, Oxford University Press, New York, New York, 2002; Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary, 29th and 30th Editions, W. B. Saunders Company, Philadelphia, 2000, 2003; Genes VII, Benjamin Lewin, Oxford University Press, New York, New York, 2000; The Gale Encyclopedia of Genetic Disorders, Volumes I and II, Stacey L. Blachford, Ed., Thomson Learning, New York, New York, 2002; The Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, Inc., Springfield, Massachusetts, 1997; Molecular Biology of the Cell, 3rd Edition, Bruce Alberts, et al., Garland Publishing, 1994; The Random House Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged Edition, 1966; Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary, 1991.
DEFINITION:
- malaria
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An infectious disease endemic in parts of Africa, Asia, Turkey, the West Indies, Central and South America, and Oceania, caused by obligate intracellular protozoa of the genus Plasmodium, and usually transmitted by the bites of infected anopheline mosquitoes. It is characterized by prostration associated with paroxysms of high fever, shaking chills, sweating, anemia, and splenomegaly, which may lead to death, often from its most severe complication, cerebral malaria. Intervals between the attacks are sometimes periodic, being determined by the time required for the development of a new generation of the parasites in the body. After the initial illness, the disease may follow a chronic or relapsing course.
Used in 5 Term definitions
Used in 5 Term definitions