On the relation of the parasitic protozoa to each other and to human disease / by E.J. McWeeney.

  • McWeeney, Edmond Joseph, 1864-
Date:
1905
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Licence: In copyright

Credit: On the relation of the parasitic protozoa to each other and to human disease / by E.J. McWeeney. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    80 PARASITIC PROTOZOA. did not know it was excreted from the sores, and therefore capable of being convoyed by other than blood-sucking parasites. With regard to the disease described three or four months ago under the name of Human Tick Fever, the point of interest appeared to me to be- the announcement made by Major Eoss, in the British Medical Journal last Saturday, that it was due to a Spirillum, and was propagated by the bird-tick, Ornithodorus. That, of course, brings it at once into close connection with the Piroplasmic diseases, which are always produced by ticks. The last question of Sir Patrick Manson was whether Koch succeeded in producing Halteridium by direct inocu- lation. I am under the impression that he did. His Paper on the subject, which is contained in the Zeitschrift fur Hygiene of 1899, describes the results of his study of Halteridium and Pi'oteosoma in the blood of birds. It is a very curious thing that he should never have come across the Trypanosome stage. [My recollection was at fault here. On referring to Koch’s Paper, I find that, although he succeeded with Proteosoma, he failed to communicate Halteridium by direct inoculation.] I am extremely grateful to Dr, Copeman for all he was good enough to say of the Paper. It is quite true that it would require to be read over several times in order that it might be criticised, because I was obliged to compress a great deal of matter into as few words as possible. Coming from one who has done such good original work as Dr. Copeman has upon the virus of Small-pox, such com- mendation is very agreeable; and it would be extremely interesting if Dr. Copeman could carry out some Small-pox work on the lines indicated. The virus might possibly prove to be a filtrable one, and of Protozoal nature. I was very glad to be able to lay stress on the work of Castellani, whose application of the centrifuge to the examination of the cerebro-spinal fluid seems to be the critical point in the whole pathology of Sleeping Sickness: demonstrating as it did the constant presence of the Trypanosome at a period when the researches of the Portuguese Commission tended to ascribe to a Coccus the leading r6le in the aetiology of the disease. I think nothing now remains for me but once more to thank the Society for the patience with which they have listened to me.