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Trichomonas SP. from the Gut Contents of a Corais Snake

B. M. Das Gupta

Parasitology / Volume 28 / Issue 02 / March 1936, pp 202 ­ 205DOI: 10.1017/S003118200002240X, Published online: 06 April 2009

Link to this article: http://journals.cambridge.org/abstract_S003118200002240X

How to cite this article:B. M. Das Gupta (1936). Trichomonas SP. from the Gut Contents of a Corais Snake. Parasitology, 28, pp 202­205 doi:10.1017/S003118200002240X

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202

TRICHOMONAS SP. FROM THE GUT CONTENTS OF ACORAIS SNAKE

BY B. M. DAS GUPTA

From the Department of Protozoology, London School of Hygieneand Tropical Medicine

(With 9 Figures in the Text)

MATEEIAL AND METHODS

THE material for the present work was made available through the courtesyof Col. A. E. Hamerton. It consisted of the intestinal contents of a coraissnake which died at the London Zoological Gardens. A culture was made inserum-saline-citrate solution (Tanabe, 1925) and incubated at 23° C, and agrowth of Trichomonas was obtained on the fourth day. The strain has sincebeen maintained by subinoculation into haemoglobin-saline medium (Row,1914) every seventh day. In this medium there was excellent growth on thethird day, when smears were prepared and stained with Giemsa's stain bythe method previously described (Das Gupta, 1935), and also with Heidenhain'siron-haematoxylin. The haematoxylin method did not prove so satisfactoryfor the demonstration of the flagella and the undulating membrane, althoughit was preferable for the study of the nuclear structures, especially duringthe process of division.

MORPHOLOGY

The shape of the body is more or less piriform, although both roundedand slender forms (Figs. 4 and 5) are not uncommon. The length varied from6 to 18/4, and the width from 3 to 15 p. Most individuals, however, werebetween 8 and 14/x. long and from 4 to IO/M broad; the average size wouldthus appear to be about 12 by 8^.. The measurements were based on 200 un-selected flagellates from smears prepared from cultures and stained withGiemsa's stain. The cytoplasm is loaded with food inclusions. There are 3unequal anterior flagella, the longest being about one and a half times thelength of the shortest. The oval nucleus is vesicular with a small centralkaryosome (Fig. 6), and measures about 3*5 by 2jx. Occasionally two karyo-somes may be present (Fig. 7); and during the process of division the karyosomeis replaced by 4 or 5 granules (Fig. 8) which possibly represent chromosomes.In the later stages the blepharoplast divides but the connection between thedaughter blepharoplasts is maintained by a centrodesmose which persists tillalmost the end of division (Fig. 9). The undulating membrane is feebly de

B. M. DAS GUPTA 203

veloped, having as a rule only one or two shallow "waves", while in someorganisms the membrane shows no undulation at all and simply follows thecurve of the body (Fig. 2). Occasionally the flagellum bordering the undu-

Figs. 1—5. From smears stained with Giemsa's stain.Fig. 1. Normal individual.Fig. 2. Individual with no definite "waves" in the undulating membrane.Fig. 3. The flagellum bordering the undulating membrane has been detached and appears like

a free flagellum.Fig. 4. Rounded individual.Fig. 5. Slender form.

Figs. 6-9. From smears stained with Heidenhain's iron haematoxylin.Fig. 6. Trichomonas in resting stage; nucleus contains a central karyosome.Fig. 7. Nucleus with 2 karyosomes.Fig. 8. Nucleus with 4 granules (? chromosomes).Fig. 9. Late telophase, centrodesmose still present.

(All figures were drawn with the aid of a camera lucida, x 2000.)

lating membrane becomes detached and appears free (Fig. 3). No basal fibrehas been seen in any of the many specimens examined. The axostyle is aslender structure and protrudes beyond the body for a distance of 4-5/x oreven more. The cytostome lies close to the blepharoplast (Fig. 7).

204 Trichomonas sp.

DISCUSSION

Probably the first record of the occurrence of Trichomonas in snakes wasthat of Plimmer (1912) who, during the years 1908-11, found the flagellatesin blood smears taken from the animals post-mortem1. It may be assumed,however, that although present in the blood they were actually intestinalparasites. Plimmer did not describe fully or name any of these flagellates.

Table I. List of Trichomonas recorded from snakes

Size inSnake microns

Coluber —leopardinus

Naia iripudians —Heterodon simus —Python sebae —P. molurus —

Ablabes —calmaria

Boa —constrictor

Natrix erythrogaster 12-8/tav. length

Anteriorflagella

—

———3

4

3

4

N. natrix 11-17-5 by 4-12 3

Undulatingmembrane

—

———

3 or 4 deepwaves

1 or 2 shallowwaves

3 or more deepwaves

3 or more deep

Basalfibre

—

———

Present

Absent

Present

Absent

LocalityEurope

IndiaN. AmericaW. AfricaIndia

n

U.S.A.

England

Observerand date

Plimmer(1912)

„

Wenyon(1926)

Das Gupta(1927)

Reichenow(1928)

Das Gupta(1935)

waves (lat. fla-gellum has twofilaments)

From the insufficient data available it is difficult to differentiate withcertainty the species of Trichomonas so far observed in snakes. It will beseen from Table I that the Trichomonas from Ablabes calmaria and Natrixerythrogaster have 4 anterior flagella, a well-developed undulating membrane,and a distinct basal fibre. The Trichomonas from Boa constrictor and Natrixnatrix have 3 free flagella and no basal fibre, but the former differs from thelatter in that it has a well-developed undulating membrane, and the flagellumforming the outer margin of the membrane has two distinct filaments. Itthus appears that up to the present at least 3 distinct species of Trichomonashave been described in snakes. The present species bears a striking resemblanceto the Trichomonas from Boa constrictor. Like the latter it possesses a poorlydeveloped undulating membrane, while in both the flagellum bordering thismembrane often becomes detached probably as a result of slight pressure inpreparing the smear. Such forms may be confused with Eutrichomastix, aflagellate which is often present in the intestine of many reptiles. It seemsquite probable that the Trichomonas from the corais snake is of the samespecies as that from Boa constrictor, viz. Trichomonas boae Reichenow, 1928.

1 [Dobell, however, observed a Trichomonas in the intestine of a green whip-snake (Dryophismycterizans) in Ceylon, in 1909, and reported this in the following year. See Spolia zeylan. (1910),7,73.]

B. M. DAS GUPTA 205

SUMMARY

Trichomonas sp. from a corais snakeDescription. Body usually pear-shaped. Average size 12 x 8/x.. Three

anterior flagella of unequal length. Basal fibre absent. Feebly developedundulating membrane.

Habitat. Intestine of Dymarchon corais, from North America.Locality. London.

I wish to express my gratitude to Prof. J. G. Thomson for providing allthe facilities for carrying out this work.

REFERENCESDAS GUPTA, B. M. (1927). Note on a Trichomonas found in the gut of a non-poisonous

colubrine snake. Ind. J. med. Res. 15, 489.(1935). Some observations on pure line strains of Trichomonas hominis and Tricho-

monas of the snake, Natrix erythrogaster (a non-poisonous water snake). J. trop. Med.(Hyg.), 38, 148.

PLIMMEB, H. G. (1912). On the blood parasites found in animals in the Zoological Gardensduring the four years 1908-11. Proc. zool. Soc. Land. p. 406.

REICHENOW, E. (1926). Lehrbuch der Profozoenkunde. Jena.Row, R. (1914). Evolution of the diagnostic methods in Kala-Azar with a special reference

to a technique for intensive culture from the patient's finger blood. Trans. Grant Coll.med. Soc., Bombay.

TANABE, M. (1925). The cultivation of trichomonads from man, rat and owl. J. Parasit.12, 101.

WENYON, C. M. (1926). Protozoology. London.

(MS. received for publication 28. ix. 1935.—Ed.)