SUGGESTION ON THE FORMATION OF CRESCENTIC BODIES IN MALARIA. By ARTHUR
POWELL, M.B., M.Ch.,
Kalain, Qacliar. At certain periods of the year almost all the pigeons in this district harbour a parasite in their blood, whose behaviour and development afford, at least to me who have no claims to be considered a naturalist, considerable proof of Mannaberg's theory that the malarial crescent is a syzygy formed by the conjugation of two intracorpuscular parasites; but of which theory Mannaberg himself has brought forward no
proof.
I have
repeatedly
to the other of these
observed changes from one stages in the blood of the
pigeon. First, there are more often two small parasites (fig. 1) than one in a nucleated corpuscle. The larger these grow, the more pigment accumulates, and the nearer they approach one another till they touch finally (fig. 4.) Next, all sign of separation disappears, but the pigment is still at the ends of what is now a crescent or bent-sausage-shaped parasite (figs. 5 & 6.) The pigment slowly approaches the centre ; (figs. 7, 8, 9) the corpuscle wall breaks and the
its bird in the rapidconcavity (fig. 10.) stage ly changes to the spherical form (figs. 13,15, 1G) in which the pigment after removal from the body begins to "boil" and tumble about, exactly as the malarial parasite does in man. from Finally, many of these spheres after a time flagella are thrown out, which sometimes break away and travel about in the serum crescent is left with the nucleus tucked into
This
(figs. 17, 18.)
It is easy to understand why this parasite a crescent in the pigeon's blood. Owing to the nucleus in the oval blood corpuscle, it has to take the crescentic shape. But why should it have this shape in human non-nucleated corpuscles ? In man the crescent is only found in " malignant" infections, in which we get those conditions of ansemia in which nuclear corpuscles are so numerous that they are found in the circu-
forms
lating blood. May it not be the case that crescents are formed by conjugation in the young nucleated corpuscles in the bone marrow in man, while the parasites in the circulating blood take the more rapid
method of reproduction by sporulation? Thus we would have the hcemamceba repro-
ducing by
:?
Fission into numerous spores, can see in ordinary tertian and
(1) one ,
malarial fever,
as
any
quartan
THE INDIAN MEDICAL GAZETTE.
[Jan.
1899.
(2) Conjugation as seen by me in the pigeon, as above detailed. (3) A pseudo-sexual process according to JVrCalluin, in which a flagellum after breaking loose from a sphere (i.e., from a crescent that has become spherical) (female) buries itself in an entire sphere (i.e., crescent). Though I may add that I have never seen any thing like impregnation of a sphere by a flagellum.
fry
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
POWELL, M.B., M.Ch.,
Kalain, Qacliar. At certain periods of the year almost all the pigeons in this district harbour a parasite in their blood, whose behaviour and development afford, at least to me who have no claims to be considered a naturalist, considerable proof of Mannaberg's theory that the malarial crescent is a syzygy formed by the conjugation of two intracorpuscular parasites; but of which theory Mannaberg himself has brought forward no
proof.
I have
repeatedly
to the other of these
observed changes from one stages in the blood of the
pigeon. First, there are more often two small parasites (fig. 1) than one in a nucleated corpuscle. The larger these grow, the more pigment accumulates, and the nearer they approach one another till they touch finally (fig. 4.) Next, all sign of separation disappears, but the pigment is still at the ends of what is now a crescent or bent-sausage-shaped parasite (figs. 5 & 6.) The pigment slowly approaches the centre ; (figs. 7, 8, 9) the corpuscle wall breaks and the
its bird in the rapidconcavity (fig. 10.) stage ly changes to the spherical form (figs. 13,15, 1G) in which the pigment after removal from the body begins to "boil" and tumble about, exactly as the malarial parasite does in man. from Finally, many of these spheres after a time flagella are thrown out, which sometimes break away and travel about in the serum crescent is left with the nucleus tucked into
This
(figs. 17, 18.)
It is easy to understand why this parasite a crescent in the pigeon's blood. Owing to the nucleus in the oval blood corpuscle, it has to take the crescentic shape. But why should it have this shape in human non-nucleated corpuscles ? In man the crescent is only found in " malignant" infections, in which we get those conditions of ansemia in which nuclear corpuscles are so numerous that they are found in the circu-
forms
lating blood. May it not be the case that crescents are formed by conjugation in the young nucleated corpuscles in the bone marrow in man, while the parasites in the circulating blood take the more rapid
method of reproduction by sporulation? Thus we would have the hcemamceba repro-
ducing by
:?
Fission into numerous spores, can see in ordinary tertian and
(1) one ,
malarial fever,
as
any
quartan
THE INDIAN MEDICAL GAZETTE.
[Jan.
1899.
(2) Conjugation as seen by me in the pigeon, as above detailed. (3) A pseudo-sexual process according to JVrCalluin, in which a flagellum after breaking loose from a sphere (i.e., from a crescent that has become spherical) (female) buries itself in an entire sphere (i.e., crescent). Though I may add that I have never seen any thing like impregnation of a sphere by a flagellum.
fry
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
