Trypanosoma lewisi: in vitro oxygen uptake by parasites grown in albino and black rats.

Oxygen consumption of Trypanosoma lewisi grown in albino and black rats was measured by the direct method of Warburg. Respiration rates in buffered Ringer's solution, with and without glucose and in normal serum from the respective hosts, were determined for T lewisi grown in albino and black rats. Significantly higher respiratory rates were obtained for trypanosomes grown in albino hosts: 31 percent higher in buffered Ringer's solution with glucose and 26 percent higher in homologous serum.In this study, in which the development of the parasitemia was observed for 27 days, T lewisi populations were higher in albino rats than in black rats.