Which Plasmodium species invades young red blood cells and causes enlargement of the infected cells with singular ring forms?

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Multiple Choice

Which Plasmodium species invades young red blood cells and causes enlargement of the infected cells with singular ring forms?

Plasmodium vivax preferentially invades reticulocytes, the young red blood cells. When these cells are infected, the parasite grows inside and enlarges the host cell, giving a visibly bigger erythrocyte. The early trophozoite often appears as a single ring inside the RBC, which is a characteristic finding for this species. This combination—infection of young RBCs, enlarged host cells, and a single-ring appearance—distinguishes vivax from the other malaria parasites, which either invade RBCs of all ages with sometimes multiple rings (falciparum), infect older RBCs with different stages (malariae), or are not even Plasmodium (Babesia).

Plasmodium vivax preferentially invades reticulocytes, the young red blood cells. When these cells are infected, the parasite grows inside and enlarges the host cell, giving a visibly bigger erythrocyte. The early trophozoite often appears as a single ring inside the RBC, which is a characteristic finding for this species. This combination—infection of young RBCs, enlarged host cells, and a single-ring appearance—distinguishes vivax from the other malaria parasites, which either invade RBCs of all ages with sometimes multiple rings (falciparum), infect older RBCs with different stages (malariae), or are not even Plasmodium (Babesia).

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