Notes on the Biology of Leishmania Tropica

Abstract

The study of protozoa cultivated in artificial media has contributed in relatively small measure to our knowledge of their biology. Notwithstanding the numerous efforts made in this direction only a few protozoa have been succcessfully grown in artificial cultures in laboratories, and in many cases it has been necessary to make repeated inoculations, from one animal to another, in order to maintain certain protozoa alive.In fact, successful culture of pathogenic protozoa has been made only within the last twenty years. Moreover, the failure of the first attempts at general use of cultures, and the results of these attempts, incorrectly interpreted, have been partially responsible for chilling the enthusiasm which accompanied the first fruitful investigations in this field of proto-zoology.Alongside the brilliant results of Novy and McNeal, who first successfully cultivated trypanasoma in artificial media, the partially successful results of Bass with hematozoa, and of Ziemann with piroplasma, we must place the first fruitless attempts at amoeba culture, which led countless investigators to false interpretations, and also the failures in attempts to cultivate many other protozoa.