Plasmodium dominicana

Plasmodium dominicana
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Clade:	Diaphoretickes
Clade:	Sar
Clade:	Alveolata
Phylum:	Apicomplexa
Class:	Aconoidasida
Order:	Haemospororida
Family:	Plasmodiidae
Genus:	Plasmodium
Species:	P. dominicana
Binomial name
Plasmodium dominicana Poinar, 2005

Plasmodium dominicana is an extinct parasite of the genus Plasmodium .

The species is only known from a mosquito fossil, dating from the Cenozoic era, that was found embedded in amber. The mosquito vector was identified as Culex malariager . The fossil was found in what is now the Dominican Republic. ^{[1] [2]}

The vertebrate host of this species is unknown but it seems likely that it may have been a bird.

Description

Oldest mosquito fossil with Plasmodium dominicana, 15–20 million years old

The parasite was first described by Poinar in 2005. ^[1] It appears that it may have been a relation of Plasmodium juxtanucleare which would place it in the subgenus Bennettinia .

Geographical occurrence

The fossil was found in the Dominican Republic.

Clinical features and host pathology

The host seems likely to have been a member of the order Galliformes but this cannot be confirmed.

References

1. Poinar G Jr. (2005) Plasmodium dominicana n. sp. (Plasmodiidae: Haemospororida) from Tertiary Dominican amber. Syst. Parasitol. 61(1):47-52.
2. John P. Roche (2016). "Did the Malaria Parasite First Evolve in the Insect Vector or the Vertebrate Host?". Entomology Today. March 18, 2016.