The embryos of Filaria loa

Abstract

The embryo of Filaria loa has never been fully studied or described and for this reason the hypothesis put forward by manson, that the Filaria diurna is the larva of Filaria loa, remains unproven. when manson suggested this connection he had at hand some sketches of embryos which leuckart had made and sent to him. as these sketches were not of sufficient aid to establish the identity of the embryos with the larvae found by him in the blood, and as no metamorphosis takes place in the larvae while circulating in the blood, it is reasonable to suppose that they must have been rather crude sketches. however, the hypothesis came to be accepted because it was well supported by the fact that the two worms have the same geographical distribution and also by the occasional discovery of both in the same host. at the same time that this hypothesis was advanced, manson changed the name from Filaria sanguinis hominis major to Filaria sanguinis hominis diurna and said that the species was practically indistinguishable on morphological grounds from the well-known Filaria sanguinis hominis of Lewis (Filaria nocturna, Manson) i.e.Filaria bancrofti. this fact made it all the more necessary to observe embryos taken from an adult female Filaria loa before venturing to state the origin of the larvae found in the blood.