531 is 
Sixth. This form of conjugation is not absolutely essential to sporula- 
tion or to the production of clinical symptoms. 
Seventh. It is necessary for the maintenance of auto-infection, and its 
disappearance results eventually in spontaneous recovery of the patient. 
As has been stated, conjugation in the protozoa is intended to prevent 
reproductive degeneration and to maintain the existence of the organism. 
In the malarial plasmodium the process is without doubt intended to 
preserve its reproductive power and all the facts which have been 
observed confirm this opinion. 
Malarial plasmodia in man reproduce by spore formation, but a con- 
tinuation of this process will ultimately end in exhaustion as it does 
with other protozoan organisms and such exhaustion is prevented by 
conjugation, after a certain number of generations of the plasmodia has 
been produced by sporulation. The result is a “rejuvenescence” of the 
nearly exhausted individuals and renewed activity in sporulation, and 
thus the malarial infection is maintained. In acute, initial attacks of 
malaria, conjugating plasmodia are always present, sporulating bodies 
are numerous and the clinical symptoms are pronounced. In latent 
infections, the first named are almost always absent, sporulating bodies 
are of very rare occurrence, and there are no clinical symptoms of malarial 
infection. During spontaneous recovery, conjugating plasmodia entirely 
disappear and if a relapse occurs they only reappear just before the 
occurrence of clinical symptoms. All of these facts point to but one 
conclusion, namely, that intracorpuscular conjugation favors the reproduc- 
tion of the plasmodia of malaria, plays a very important part in the 
appearance of the clinical symptoms because it favors sporulation and 
its disappearance is the principal cause of spontaneous recovery. 
