Sporozoite

//spɒɹəˈzəʊʌɪt// noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Any of the minute active bodies into which a sporozoan divides just before it infects a new host cell.

    "Ross […] was then able to outline its history within the mosquito: first, as a zygote in the stomach; then as an oocyst in the stomach wall; and finally as a mature sporozoite that reaches first the proboscis and then a human host when the insect bites and squirts its saliva prior to sucking blood."

  2. 2
    one of the minute active bodies into which sporozoans divide in one stage of their life cycle wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
zoite

Example

More examples

"A second trial involving another sporozoite vaccine, weakened by radiation, was carried out in Mali. It tested whether the vaccine prevented reinfection among people who had already been exposed to malaria."

Etymology

From translingual Sporozoa + -ite.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.