[Biology of man-mosquito Plasmodium transmission]

The transmission of Plasmodium is a complex process that requires the encounter of three organisms: the parasite, the host and the mosquito vector. For a better understanding, the transmission of this parasite can be divided in four cyclical steps: 1) the development in man, including gametocytogenesis, 2) the transfer from man to mosquito, 3) the sporogonic development in the mosquito, 4) the transfer from mosquito to man. The present article proposes a review of these different aspects and focuses especially to recent biological knowledge on Plasmodium falciparum in the gametocytogenesis issues, infectivity of gametocytes, sporogonic development and natural factors limiting this development.