This is a model with simple numbers. One red blood cell is infected…
Contributed by StemPy LabTry it on paper first. A hint, the key idea and the worked solution are here when you need them.
This is a model with simple numbers. One red blood cell is infected. When it bursts, it releases merozoites, and every merozoite enters a fresh red cell. Each cycle takes hours. All cells burst together.
- How many red cells are infected after cycle?
- How many are infected after cycles?
- How many are infected after cycles?
- How many days do cycles take?
Need a reminder? The key ideaShow
Malaria is caused by Plasmodium. Sporozoites enter the human at the bite, multiply in the liver and then in the red blood cells, which burst and release haemozoin. Gametocytes form in the red cells and are sucked up by the female Anopheles, where the gametes fuse in the gut. Tertian fever returns every 2 days and quartan fever every 3 days.
The worked solution
Have you tried it?
Work it out on paper first. It is fine to get stuck or make a mistake: that is how we learn. When you are ready, go through the solution one step at a time, and check each step against your own.
Given. Start: infected cell. Each cycle multiplies the number by . One cycle takes hours.
Plan. Multiply by once for each cycle.
Step 1. One cycle. infected cells.
Step 2. Three cycles. infected cells.
Step 3. Four cycles. infected cells.
Step 4. The time. hours, which is days.
Answer: ; ; ; days.
Check. Each answer is times the one before it.
Watch out. This is a model. In a real infection many merozoites do not find a new red cell, and the immune system removes some infected cells. The number of merozoites from one cell also differs by species.
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