Two species of mosquitoes were joined parabiotically with glass capillaries so as to share common hemolymph. In experiments designed to determine optimum physical factors was found that capillaries of 2.5 mm in length, 100 microns OD and with pointed ends were tolerated best by mosquitoes and permitted optimum hemolymph transfer. Maximum survival of mosquitoes was noted when capillaries were inserted in the post mesospiracular membranous area, in the largest mosquito first and allowed to fill with hemolymph prior to inserting in the second mosquito. Mosquitoes having blood meals prior to twinning retained capillaries best. Use of CO2 anesthetization and a 30-min holding period while anesthetized contributed to greater survival and union of the mosquitoes. In the principal experiments, designed to study the nature of innate immunity of Culex pipiens to Plasmodium gallinaceum, 243 of 2,126 parabiotic twins of C. pipiens and infected Aedes aegypti survived to be evaluated. None of the C. pipiens became infected and only four A. aegypti remained infected. The controls were 93 to 95% infected. It was concluded that the refractory species possessed substances that were toxic to the parasites and prevented parasite development in both species. If there was a lack of essential substances (that could not be transferred) in the refractory C. pipiens they could have been provided by the highly susceptible A. aegypti and both species would have become infected. Innate immunity is therefore antiblastic not atreptic.
Wandering phagocytes in tissue cultures were attracted to the exoerythrocytic stages, both intracellular and extracellular, of Plasmodium fallax. They phagocytized free merozoites or schizonts that had been freed from host cells. They attempted to phagocytize large intracellular parasites.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.