Plasmodium, the organism that causes malaria, has a mass of organelles at the tip of the cell that enables it to enter cells in the human body.This characteristic suggests that Plasmodium is a member of the
A) alveolates.
B) stramenopiles.
C) apicomplexans.
D) choanoflagellates.
E) rhizarians.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The mass of organelles at the tip of the cell that enables Plasmodium to enter cells in the human body is known as the apical complex. This is a defining characteristic of apicomplexans, of which Plasmodium is a member. Alveolates (A) and stramenopiles (B) do not possess this feature, and choanoflagellates (D) and rhizarians (E) are not related to Plasmodium or apicomplexans.

Plasmodium, the Organism That Causes Malaria, Has a Mass of Organelles