The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-04-23
STRANGE DISCOVERIES ABOUT NAL AR|ALEEVER
Curious Story the Between Germ and Two
Large Pnasocy Mosquitoes
Dr. Ros-Where the Disease Dangerous

!
world, probably there would be no ma
laria. This is because malaria is caused
| by microbe which is carried about
from person to person by the mosquito.
In other words, malaria is a blood dis
ease, in that mosquitoes suck up the
microbes from the blood of one person
! and then fly off and fnoculate other
persons with those germs Meantime
the mosquitoes have malaria Flies
transmit the germs of typhoid fever,
fleas disseminate anthrax and mosqui-
tos are the purveyors of the filaria,
which causes elephantiasis and of Che
plasmodium, which causes malaria.
This transmission of the microbe of
malaria has been proved by the expert
ments of DR.. Ronald Ross of the Indian
medical staff. He worked in the labor
atoTy of Colonel d. D. Cunningham in
Calcutta. He fed some mosquitoes on
patients afflicted with malaria and then
allowed these same insects to puncture
the bodies of captive birds The inoc-
ulatlon was quite complete.
During his investigations DR.. Ross
saw one of the most remarkable battles
that has ever occurred. This was a
three phagocytes. The phagocytes are
really white blood corpuscles. They
have. been called the policemen of the
blood and their business in life is to
deVour all the impurities, foreign sub
stances and disease germs of the blood
In this instance, however. the malaria
m1crobe succeeded in worsting the
three phagOcytes.
Until DR.. Ross Investigations we
no .f@,sr L., l.
OF the malaria germ. How it Travelled
from hoss to host was but little under
stood Chills and fever, or fever and
aSue were terms expressive of peculiar
chlnatlc aftic1on. Laveran. after years
OF continued argument, succeeded in
showing that it was Il germ disease. but
the complete history of that germ. of
winch there are several varieties, has
not been known until lately
Adventures of a Microbe.
The malaria germ propagates it's
species by augmentation Periodically
every day, or every three days, or every
-FOUR days, according to the tyne of
the disease, the fulI-g grown germ sub
divides, and each division becomes a
tull-Hedged microbe with power to re-
produce itself. All the germs-plasmo-
ana, as they are called-subdivide
some minutes of one another. 1t is this
that causes the periodical chill in ma
larla patients. In fact, when you see a
malaria patient undergoing his daily
chlll, you may know that millions of
young malaria germs are just break
ing away from the parent stem.
Inc young germ, however, is in dam
ger OF being devoured by phagacytes in
me blood. In fact. a great many are
thus deVoured. When malaria is we'll
advanced the number of germs is So
much greater than the number of pha-
SocyteS that quite enough are spared
to do damage. The germ at this per-
lod IS only shapeless mass of matter
carried along in the blood and contain
ing within its minute mass a still more
minute quantity of pigment like specks
winch dance about violently in the lit
tie animal
II has instinct enough to protect it
self from further depredations of DEa-
Socytes. 1t feeds on the contents of red
blood corpuscles. and as it devou~s the !
haemoglobin contained in the corpuscie |
II craWlS inside the Skin" of the latter |
the better to keep clear of the pha- |
gocytes. These little scavenger.s of the I
blood actually have been sean under |
the microscope to be fooled" bv this |
trick OF the malaria germ. The germ |
=
puscle Therefore, when the phago- |
cyte comes up to a malaria germ in
SIDE the red blood corpuscle. it may
feel 1t all over, but it generally passes |
by, m1sled as to its genuineness. So the
secure in its retreat. goes
DE- eating the inside of its little house
and growing Justify against The time of
its reproduction.
After a time it becomes crescent
shaped, and then, if it is examined
under glass, the remains of the red
blood cell skin can be seen stretch
ng across the hollow side of the cres-
cent. As the germ grows older. the
crescent shape gradually changes to
circular. Before the day is half gone.
he circular form divides into two seq
nents. That is, the line of derlar-
,atlon can be seen under the micro
scope; the germ actually does rot
ilVlde until later. After another period
u time these two segnents subdivide
)r change to four, and these again to
light, and so on.
When the augmentation at last is
complete, some wonderful process OF
geography, or perhaps the recognition
IL the germ itself of the end of the
hen stage of its existence. gives what
night be called an intra- human signal
md the universal breaking away Of the
young germs takes place
The process is repeated again ard
again. until the suffered dies or the
growth of the germs is checked by
medical or other means But in de-
the life of the germ we have
assumed that it existed within the
human body. How did it get there?
Undoubtedly air and water transport
he malaria germ under certain condi-
ions, but there is a far more potent
disseminating agent-the MOSQUITO.
Before stating why, however let me
efer to another phase of the life of
he mosquito germ which heretofore