Page 74 - The Miracle in the Mosquito
P. 74

THE MIRACLE IN THE MOSQUITO


                 as far as the digestive system. It takes 3-4 days to digest the blood
                 and then the sucking process is repeated.
                     If we stop and think for a while about all these processes, we
                 will come to some important conclusions.
                     The mosquito doesn’t just have a superior receptive system
                 and a cutting and sucking mechanism to get the blood it needs; it
                 also has chemical knowledge. As explained above, the mosquito
                 uses a secretion, which prevents the blood from coagulating.
                 What’s more, this secretion protects it from an enzyme in the de-
                 fence system of a body unknown to it and of which it has no inti-
                 mate knowledge. This secretion even has the property of anaes-
                 thetising the living tissues it cuts like a surgeon.
                     In light of this information one can’t help asking these ques-
                 tions:

                     ◆ How does the mosquito know that blood coagulates?
                     ◆ How has it learnt that cutting into the living tissue of its
                 victim causes pain and how has it developed a numbing technique
                 to get round this problem?
                     ◆ Giving a local anaesthetic before an operation is a tech-































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