Differences in onset of disease and severity of psychopathology between toxoplasmosis‐related and toxoplasmosis‐unrelated schizophrenia

Holub, David; Flegr, Jaroslav; Dragomirecká, Eva; Rodríguez, Mabel; Preiss, Marek; Novák, Tomáš; Čermák, Jan; Horáček, Jiří; Kodym, Petr; Libiger, Jan; Höschl, Cyril; Motlová, Lucie Bankovská

doi:10.1111/acps.12031

Cited by 68 publications

(56 citation statements)

References 62 publications

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“…25 ). Finally, Toxoplasma seropositive schizophrenic patients have been shown to score significantly higher on the PANSS-positive subscale 26,27 and have reduced grey matter density compared with seronegative patients, 28 indicating that infection may be associated with exacerbated pathology. To our best knowledge, T gondii has not yet been detected in the brain of schizophrenia patients, but low infection levels often render it difficult to detect the parasite in tissues.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Shared Immune and Repair Markers During ExperimentalToxoplasmaChronic Brain Infection and Schizophrenia

Tomasik

Schultz

Kluge

et al. 2015

SCHBUL

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Chronic neurologic infection with Toxoplasma gondii is relatively common in humans and is one of the strongest known risk factors for schizophrenia. Nevertheless, the exact neuropathological mechanisms linking T gondii infection and schizophrenia remain unclear. Here we utilize a mouse model of chronic T gondii infection to identify protein biomarkers that are altered in serum and brain samples at 2 time points during chronic infection. Furthermore, we compare the identified biomarkers to those differing between "postmortem" brain samples from 35 schizophrenia patients and 33 healthy controls. Our findings suggest that T gondii infection causes substantial and widespread immune activation indicative of neural damage and reactive tissue repair in the animal model that partly overlaps with changes observed in the brains of schizophrenia patients. The overlapping changes include increases in C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), interferon gamma (IFNγ), plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1), tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases 1 (TIMP-1), and vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM-1). Potential roles of these factors in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia and toxoplasmosis are discussed. Identifying a defined set of markers shared within the pathophysiological landscape of these diseases could be a key step towards understanding their specific contributions to pathogenesis.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Shared Immune and Repair Markers During ExperimentalToxoplasmaChronic Brain Infection and Schizophrenia

Tomasik

Schultz

Kluge

et al. 2015

SCHBUL

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“…gondii infection has been associated with symptom severity in schizophrenia 23,27,28 . In addition, latent toxoplasmosis may have a negative impact on the disease course and treatment response in patients with schizophrenia 29 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Toxoplasma gondii infection and chronic schizophrenia: is there any association?

Campos-Carli

Vieira

Rocha

et al. 2017

Arch. Clin. Psychiatry (São Paulo)

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Background: Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) infection has been identified as a risk factor for schizophrenia. Objectives: Herein, we sought to evaluate the association between T. gondii infection and clinical symptoms and quality of life in patients with schizophrenia. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study with 48 patients with chronic schizophrenia and 40 controls. Peripheral blood was drawn, and IgM and IgG anti-T. gondii antibodies were evaluated by Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). Depressive, positive and negative symptoms were assessed, respectively, by the Calgary Depression Scale (CDS) and the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). Cognitive performance was assessed in patients by the Brazilian version of the Schizophrenia Cognition Rating Scale (SCoRS-BR). Quality of life was assessed by the Brazilian version of the Quality of Life in Schizophrenia scale (QLS-BR). Results: The prevalence and titers of T. gondii IgM and IgG antibodies did not differ between patients and controls. The positive serology for T. gondii IgG antibodies was not associated with illness symptoms, cognitive performance, depressive symptoms or quality of life. Discussion: Our findings suggest that toxoplasmosis infection is not associated with severity of symptoms, quality of life, cognitive or depressive symptoms in schizophrenia patients.

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“…Clinical manifestations differ between seropositive and seronegative schizophrenic patients, with a predominance in the former of positive symptoms (delirium, hallucinations, disorganized thinking), cognitive disorders (abstract thinking difficulties, disorientation, attention deficit), and agitation [50,54]. Some researchers also observed that patients with schizophrenia and anti-T. gondii antibodies had a significantly higher risk of dying from natural causes [55] and were more likely to attempt suicide [56] in comparison with seronegative patients.…”

Section: Studies Based On the Detection Of Anti-toxoplasma Gondii Antmentioning

confidence: 99%

Toxoplasma gondii and Schizophrenia: A Relationship That Is Not Ruled Out

Sorlózano-Puerto¹,

Gutiérrez‐Fernández²

2016

Schizophrenia Treatment - The New Facets

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Over recent years, it has been proposed that some diseases of unknown origin, such as schizophrenia, may be caused by persistent chronic infections coupled with a genetic component and may be perpetuated by the immune system. This hypothesis is supported by epidemiological and biological evidence on the exposure of schizophrenics to infectious diseases during prenatal or postnatal periods, including Toxoplasma gondii, chlamydia, human herpes virus, human endogenous retroviruses, parvovirus B19, mumps, and flu viruses. This growing list of microbes will undoubtedly continue to increase in the future. Linking infection to schizophrenia is a complex challenge that requires further experimental and epidemiological research. T. gondii is the infectious agent that has most frequently been related to neuropsychiatric disorders, including schizophrenia, and it is considered to represent a highly useful model to analyze the influence of a microorganism on human behavior and the development of psychiatric disease. It may also help to detect patient subpopulations susceptible to treatment with specific antimicrobials by improving definition of the differential phenotype of the disease, and it offers the possibility of a preventive approach.

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Differences in onset of disease and severity of psychopathology between toxoplasmosis‐related and toxoplasmosis‐unrelated schizophrenia

Abstract: Latent toxoplasmosis in schizophrenia may lead to more severe positive psychopathology and perhaps less favourable course of schizophrenia.

Cited by 68 publications

References 62 publications

Shared Immune and Repair Markers During ExperimentalToxoplasmaChronic Brain Infection and Schizophrenia

Shared Immune and Repair Markers During ExperimentalToxoplasmaChronic Brain Infection and Schizophrenia

Toxoplasma gondii infection and chronic schizophrenia: is there any association?

Toxoplasma gondii and Schizophrenia: A Relationship That Is Not Ruled Out

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