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Coccidia parasitic in man 
Rhinosporidium 1 . This curious organism, which gives rise to polypoid 
growths in the nose, appears to have been discovered by Malbran in S. America 
in 1892. Another case was found there by Seeber in 1896, and first described 
bv him in 1900. O’Kinealy independently discovered the organism in Calcutta 
in 1894, but did not describe it until 1903. Since then other cases have been 
studied, mostly from India. Wernicke regarded the parasite as a coccidian, 
and in 1900 named it Coccidium seeheri. Minchin and Fantham (1905), in 
ignorance of Seeber s work, restudied the organisms from O’Kinealy’s case 
and named them Rhinosporidium kinealyi. They regarded them as “Haplo- 
sporidia." Although the systematic position of Rhinosporidium is still very 
problematic, it may be stated with some confidence that it is almost certainly 
not a coccidium 2 . I may add that to refer any organism to the group Haplo- 
sporidia practically amounts, at the present moment, to a confession of 
ignorance of its true status. 
Pseudo-coccidia. In addition to the highly questionable “ organisms ” which 
we have already had occasion to notice, “ pseudo-coccidia”—bodies of various 
sorts mistaken for coccidia, “psorosperms,” or related protozoa—have been 
described from almost every organ and part of the human body. Many of these 
have been found in malignant growths, and have excited a transient interest, 
and occasionally attained some celebrity, as “causes” of cancer. The cases 
of Podwyssozki, and his “Karyophagus hominis ,” have already been noticed. 
They will serve as an example of a class of cases and parasites too numerous to 
mention, and now of nothing but slight historic interest. The literature con¬ 
cerning these and similar “parasites” has been collected by Labbe (1899), 
whose work should be consulted by those interested in the subject. 
Of other pseudo-coccidia it will suffice to mention a few of the best known. 
The oldest historically are those discovered by Lindeinann (1863, 1865), who 
was one of the first to find “ psorosperms ” and “gregarines ” in man. He re¬ 
corded their presence in the heart, aortic valves, and kidney ; and did not 
hesitate to identify the forms in the heart-muscle with the coccidia of the 
rabbit’s liver— Eimeria stiedae —which he regarded as a Monocystis (cf. 
Lindemann (1865), p. 385). .The value of his observations may be gauged from 
the fact that he also recorded the discovery of “gregarines” lying on the 
surface of human hairs—an observation at first accepted, but later justly 
censured by Leuckart (1879). Similar “coccidia” discovered in the kidneys 
and generative organs—especially of the female 3 —by later investigators, 
deserve no further notice here. 
1 For the facts, names, and dates given in this paragraph, see Seeber (1912) and Minchin and 
Fantham (1905). From Seeber’s account it appears that the correct name of the organism is 
Rhinosporidium, seeheri Wernicke, 1900. 
2 On this point the views of Seeber and Minchin are in agreement. - It is also the opinion which 
L have formed from the examination of some excellent preparations which my friend Dr J. H. 
Ashworth of Edinburgh has very kindly shown me. 
3 Cf. Pick (1895): ‘‘Our knowledge of the Sporozoa in gynaecology must, at the present time, 
be described as entirely negative.” 
