Category: Blood cell parasite
-
Don’t ‘Tick Me Off: Babesia blood donation screening
Babesia is a red blood cell parasite and the agent of babesiosis. Ticks naturally transmit it to humans; however, the parasite can also be transmitted through blood transfusion. Healthy individuals can be infected without knowing it or may experience mild, flu-like symptoms; however, the disease can be severe and cause death in 5% of infected individuals…