Presence of Toxoplasma gondii infection in brain as a potential cause of risky behavior: a report of 102 autopsy cases

Samojłowicz, Dorota; Twarowska-Małczyńska, Joanna; Borowska-Solonynko, Aleksandra; Poniatowski, Łukasz A.; Sharma, Nipika; Olczak, Mieszko

doi:10.1007/s10096-018-3427-z

Cited by 32 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 68 publications

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“…Infection with the protozoan T. gondii is prevalent in the human population, 104 and some very high rates have been reported, 105 confirming that T. gondii is a true endozoite. In experimental rats, persistent infection remarkably blocks their innate aversion to the odor of cats (“fatal attraction”), the definitive host for T. gondii , thereby increasing the chance of transmission to that species 106,107 .…”

Section: The Enemy Within: Behavioral Changes and Immunosuppressionmentioning

confidence: 98%

From conifers to cognition: Microbes, brain and behavior

Lathe

Clair

2020

Genes Brain and Behavior

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A diversity of bacteria, protozoans and viruses (“endozoites”) were recently uncovered within healthy tissues including the human brain. By contrast, it was already recognized a century ago that healthy plants tissues contain abundant endogenous microbes (“endophytes”). Taking endophytes as an informative precedent, we overview the nature, prevalence, and role of endozoites in mammalian tissues, centrally focusing on the brain, concluding that endozoites are ubiquitous in diverse tissues. These passengers often remain subclinical, but they are not silent. We address their routes of entry, mechanisms of persistence, tissue specificity, and potential to cause long‐term behavioral changes and/or immunosuppression in mammals, where rabies virus is the exemplar. We extend the discussion to Herpesviridae, Coronaviridae, and Toxoplasma, as well as to diverse bacteria and yeasts, and debate the advantages and disadvantages that endozoite infection might afford to the host and to the ecosystem. We provide a clinical perspective in which endozoites are implicated in neurodegenerative disease, anxiety/depression, and schizophrenia. We conclude that endozoites are instrumental in the delicate balance between health and disease, including age‐related brain disease, and that endozoites have played an important role in the evolution of brain function and human behavior.

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Section: The Enemy Within: Behavioral Changes and Immunosuppressionmentioning

confidence: 98%

From conifers to cognition: Microbes, brain and behavior

Lathe

Clair

2020

Genes Brain and Behavior

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“…Differences in personality types in T. gondiiseropositive individuals were the first reported change in otherwise healthy individuals, leading to a multitude of follow-up studies (59,(61)(62)(63)(64)(65)(66)(67). Since then, various other behaviors have been associated with T. gondii infection, including increased aggression (65,68), increased risk for motor vehicle accidents (65, 69-72), decreased reaction time (73,74), and excessive ethanol consumption (75). While risky behavior is a popular subject (76,77), publication bias is likely a contributing factor, and most studies lack multifactorial analyses.…”

Section: T Gondii and Humansmentioning

confidence: 99%

Latent Toxoplasmosis Effects on Rodents and Humans: How Much is Real and How Much is Media Hype?

Johnson

Koshy

2020

mBio

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Toxoplasma gondii is a ubiquitous, intracellular protozoan parasite with a broad range of intermediate hosts, including humans and rodents. In many hosts, T. gondii establishes a latent long-term infection by converting from its rapidly dividing or lytic form to its slowly replicating and encysting form. In humans and rodents, the major organ for encystment is the central nervous system (CNS), which has led many to investigate how this persistent CNS infection might influence rodent and human behavior and, more recently, neurodegenerative diseases. Given the interest in this topic, here we seek to take a global approach to the data for and against the effects of latent T. gondii on behavior and neurodegeneration and the proposed mechanisms that might underlie behavior modifications.

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“…Latent toxoplasmosis has also been linked to changes in cell signaling pathways that may lead to neurological disorders including schizophrenia, epilepsy, Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease (6)(7)(8)(9)(10)(11). Furthermore, a positive association has been made between T. gondii infection and increased risk-seeking behaviour in humans (12,13).…”

Section: Toxoplasma Gondii Infection In Humansmentioning

confidence: 99%

Toxoplasma gondii: How an Amazonian parasite became an Inuit health issue

Reiling¹,

Dixon²

2019

CCDR

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Toxoplasma gondii is a protozoan parasite that originated in the Amazon. Felids (mammals in the cat family) are the only definitive hosts. These animals shed large numbers of infectious oocysts into the environment, which can subsequently infect many intermediate hosts, including birds, mammals and, possibly, fish. Human T. gondii seroprevalence is high in some parts of the Canadian Arctic and is associated with adverse health consequences among Inuit population. Since the range of felids does not extend to the Arctic, it is not immediately obvious how this parasite got from the Amazon to the Arctic. The objectives of this overview are to summarize the health impacts of T. gondii infection in Inuit in Canada's North and to consider how this infection could have reach them. This article reviews the prevalence of T. gondii infection in terrestrial and marine animals in the Canadian Arctic and discusses their potential role in the foodborne transmission of this parasite to humans. Two distribution factors seem plausible. First, felids in more southern habitats may release infectious oocysts into waterways. As these oocysts remain viable for months, they can be transported northward via rivers and ocean currents and could infect Arctic fish and eventually the marine mammals that prey on the fish. Second, migratory terrestrial and marine intermediate hosts may be responsible for carrying T. gondii tissue cysts to the Arctic, where they may then pass on the infection to carnivores. The most likely source of T. gondii in Inuit is from the consumption of traditionally-prepared country foods including meat and organs from intermediate hosts, which may be consumed raw. With climate change, northward migration of felids may increase the prevalence of T. gondii in Arctic wildlife.

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Presence of Toxoplasma gondii infection in brain as a potential cause of risky behavior: a report of 102 autopsy cases

Cited by 32 publications

References 68 publications

From conifers to cognition: Microbes, brain and behavior

From conifers to cognition: Microbes, brain and behavior

Latent Toxoplasmosis Effects on Rodents and Humans: How Much is Real and How Much is Media Hype?

Toxoplasma gondii: How an Amazonian parasite became an Inuit health issue

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