How do people contract malaria?

People contract malaria through the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes. When an infected mosquito bites a person, it injects sporozoites, a type of malaria parasite, into the bloodstream. The sporozoites travel to the liver, where they mature and multiply, eventually rupturing the liver cells and releasing thousands more parasites called merozoites.

The merozoites infect red blood cells, where they multiply and rupture the cells, releasing even more merozoites. This cycle of infection can continue for several weeks, causing a range of symptoms including fever, chills, sweats, headache, muscle pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and fatigue.

Malaria can be fatal if not treated promptly and appropriately.