noun, plural plas·mo·di·a [plaz-moh-dee-uh] /plæzˈmoʊ di ə/.
- Biology. an ameboid, multinucleate mass or sheet of cytoplasm characteristic of some stages of organisms, as of myxomycetes or slime molds.
- any parasitic protozoan of the genus Plasmodium, causing malaria in humans.
noun plural -dia (-dɪə)
- an amoeboid mass of protoplasm, containing many nuclei: a stage in the life cycle of certain organisms, esp the nonreproductive stage of the slime moulds
- any parasitic sporozoan protozoan of the genus Plasmodium, such as P. falciparum and P. vivax, which cause malaria
n.1871, Modern Latin, coined 1863 in Germany from plasma + -odium, from Greek -odes “like” (see -oid). n. pl. plas•mo•di•a (-dē-ə)
- A multinucleate mass of cytoplasm formed by the aggregation of a number of amoeboid cells, as that characteristic of the vegetative phase of the slime molds.
- A protozoan of the genus Plasmodium, which includes the parasites that cause malaria.
n.
- A genus of protozoans that are parasites of the red blood cells of vertebrates and include the causative agents of malaria.
Plural plasmodia
- A mass of protoplasm having many cell nuclei but not divided into separate cells. It is formed by the combination of many amoeba-like cells and is characteristic of the active, feeding phase of certain slime molds.
- Any of various single-celled organisms (called protozoans) that exist as parasites in vertebrate animals, one of which causes malaria.