Why can a mosquito spread a disease like malaria, but not aids?

Question

Sorry, but the fact they suck blood doesn't seem to be the answer. Mosquitoes get infected by malaria and spread the disease to the next person(s) they bite. Why doesn't the same pricipal apply to other diseases like e.g. aids?

Answer 1

There are diseases that mosquitos transmit, but TB, AIDS, and Herpes are not among them.

First, a mosquito does not infect the "next" person she bites. When the mosquito "bites" she injects a certain saliva under the skin to prevent clotting the blood. If the blood clotted, it would clog her feeding tube. After taking her blood meal, her feeding tube is wiped clean of blood and she rests for a few hours to digest it, thereby allowing germs on the tube to die.

Malaria, dengue fever, and west nile are carried because they actually develop inside the mosquito. The parasite Plasmodium (for malaria) has a host inside the human, and another host inside the mosquito. (I can send you the whole biology chapter if you want it.) The parasite develops inside the mosquito and is then sent to the salivary glands, where it is passed on to the next human in that saliva -- about 8 hours after biting the first malaria-infected human. This is not actually by using germs in the feeding tube, but by using the parasitic life cycle.

At this time, AIDS has not developed into a disease that can use mosquitos as hosts. It can be sexually transmitted, because there are virus cells in the reproductive fluids and there are always small abrasions made during a sexual act which allows these virus cells to pass into the blood stream. It can be transmitted by blood transfusion, or by using an injection needle more than one as is common among stoned drug users.

However, AIDS does not (yet) have the ability in its life cycle to develop inside a mosquito and migrate to the salivary glands so as to infect the next person. It is unlikely that it will, because it is a virus and not a living parasite; also it is a mammalian disease and would have no effect on insect cells. If AIDS were passed by mosquitos, using the number of malaria infections every year and the impossiblity of buy medication for either disease, everyone in Africa would have been dead for almost a century as the disease passed.

I hope that this answers your question and the worry about the possible diseases passed by the mosquitos. If you want more information just contact me!

Answer 2

Most of the answers here are b*ll*cks, and semi-literate b*ll*cks at that. The female (never the male) Anopheles mosquito (of which there are more than sixty species) carries - amongst other things - four different types of protozoan parasites in her gut - Plasmodium falciparum, P.vivax, P. ovale and P. malaria. Falciparum is the real killer but the others are pretty nasty too. The thing about these little b*gg*rs is they are protozoans - single celled animals capable of independent life, and they can rub along pretty well in the mosquito's gut until she expels them into the human bloodstream in her saliva next time she feeds. In fact they have adapted perfectly to their environment and undergo a number of metamorphosis-like physical changes while living in her gut. The HIV retrovirus (responsible for the AIDS infection ) is another story. When a mosquito transmits a disease agent from one person to another, the infectious agent must remain alive inside the mosquito until transfer is completed. If the mosquito digests the parasite it cannot be passed on to the next host. The HIV retrovirus is just extra food to the mosquito and is digested along with the blood she takes in, generally within one or two days. The mosquito will not feed again until she has completely digested her last meal, hence by the time she goes looking for her next host she would have digested (i.e. destroyed) any HIV particles they may have been carrying.

Answer 3

Because the malaria parasite needs a mosquito in part of it's lifecycle, before it passes to humans. The HIV virus cannot survive outside the human body.

Answer 4

Cause the bacteria that cause Malaria can live outside the human body for some time. AIDS virus dies soon after being extracted from the human dody.

Answer 5

People have no doubt tried, but i believe no one yet has had sex with a mosquito. Thus it has not been infected

Aids is also very temperature sensitive and does not live long outside the human body.

Answer 6

The only sensible answer is from Go Portugal! The HIV virus has yet to find a way of surviving it's way through the mosquito's gut!

Answer 7

u c tat mosquitoes carries the virus which causes malaria n which has nothin 2 do with aids

Answer 8

Because human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is bigger than the mouth of mosquito, so it can not pass trough it. But malaria can pass it.

Answer 9

They suck blood, not return it

Answer 10

after few researches you will here that too