Why female anopheles mosquito is one that transmitted malaria not male mosquito?
Female anopheles mosquitoes are the ones that transmit malaria because they require blood from humans or animals for egg production. While both male and female mosquitoes feed on plant nectar, only females need a blood meal to produce viable eggs. It is during a female mosquito’s blood meal that the malaria parasite, Plasmodium, can be transmitted from an infected person to a healthy person. Male mosquitoes do not take blood meals and therefore cannot transmit malaria.
Female Anopheles mosquitoes are the ones that transmit malaria, while male mosquitoes do not. Here's a step-by-step explanation of why this is the case:
1. Female mosquitoes require a blood meal: Both male and female mosquitoes feed on plant nectar for nourishment. However, female mosquitoes also need the proteins found in blood to produce eggs. This is why only female mosquitoes bite humans and other animals.
2. Malaria transmission: Malaria is caused by a parasite called Plasmodium, which infects humans through the bite of an infected mosquito. When a female Anopheles mosquito takes a blood meal from a human infected with malaria, it ingests the parasite along with the blood.
3. Parasite development in female mosquitoes: Inside the female mosquito, the Plasmodium parasite undergoes further development. It multiplies and grows, eventually migrating to the mosquito's salivary glands.
4. Infected mosquito bites: Once the Plasmodium parasite has reached the salivary glands of the female mosquito, it can be transmitted to another human in the mosquito's saliva during a subsequent blood meal.
5. Male mosquitoes do not transmit malaria: Male mosquitoes do not have the necessary physiological mechanism to transmit the malaria parasite. They solely rely on plant nectar for nourishment and do not take blood meals, thus eliminating their role in spreading the disease.
In summary, female Anopheles mosquitoes transmit malaria because they require a blood meal for egg production and have the ability to carry and release the Plasmodium parasite during feeding.