In the life-cycle of apicomplexan protozoa, sporozoites are cells that infect new hosts. In the parasites that cause malaria, for instance, the sporozoites are cells that leave the mosquito and enter the liver, where they multiply. Cells infected with sporozoites burst, releasing merozoites.
Sporozoites are formed by sporogony, a type of sexual or asexual reproduction by multiple fission of a spore or zygote, characteristic of many sporozoans.
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