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- Up one level
- An infection-based model of neurodevelopmental damage
An infection-based model of neurodevelopmental damage Mady Hornig, Herbert Weissenbock, Nigel Horscroft, and W. Ian Lipkin PNAS October 12, 1999;96(21):12102–12107
- Effects of Toxoplasma on Human Behavior
Schizophr Bull (2007) 33 (3): 757-760. doi: 10.1093/schbul/sbl074 First published online: January 11, 2007
"Possible mechanisms by which T. gondii may affect human behavior include its effect on dopamine and on testosterone."
- Increased risk of traffic accidents in subjects with latent toxoplasmosis: a retrospective case-control study
Jaroslav Flegr1*, Jan Havlícek2, Petr Kodym3, Marek Malý4 and Zbyněk Smahel5
BMC Infectious Diseases 2002, 2:11 doi:10.1186/1471-2334-2-11
"The subjects with latent toxoplasmosis have significantly increased risk of traffic accidents than the noninfected subjects. Relative risk of traffic accidents decreases with the duration of infection. These results suggest that 'asymptomatic' acquired toxoplasmosis might in fact represent a serious and highly underestimated public health problem, as well as an economic problem."
- Master manipulators
Shelley Adamo, Science 8 July 2016 Review of: This Is Your Brain on Parasites How Tiny Creatures Manipulate Our Behavior and Shape Society Kathleen McAuliffe, Harcourt, 2016. 292 pp. In her new book, This Is Your Brain on Parasites, Kathleen McAuliffe examines the unusual and often dramatic ways that parasites and microbial manipulators can influence the behavior of their hosts, raising the question of how much control we have over our own behavior. After reading the book, you may come to the conclusion that it is actually far less than you once thought. Science 08 Jul 2016: Vol. 353, Issue 6295, pp. 128
- People with ‘rage’ disorder twice as likely to have parasitic infection
Kevin Jiang, University of Chicago, March 25, 2016 In a study involving 358 adult subjects, a team led by researchers from the University of Chicago found that toxoplasmosis, a relatively harmless parasitic infection carried by an estimated 30 percent of all humans, is associated with intermittent explosive disorder and increased aggression. The findings are published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. “Our work suggests that latent infection with the toxoplasma gondii parasite may change brain chemistry in a fashion that increases the risk of aggressive behavior,” said senior study author Emil Coccaro, the Ellen. C. Manning Professor and chair of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience. “However, we do not know if this relationship is causal, and not everyone that tests positive for toxoplasmosis will have aggression issues,” Coccaro said, adding that additional studies are needed.
- Toxoplasma gondii - possible influences on behavior
- Toxoplasma gondii seropositivity and suicide rates in women.
Vinita J. Ling, MA,* David Lester, PhD,† Preben Bo Mortensen, DMSc,‡ Patricia W. Langenberg, PhD,€ and Teodor T. Postolache, MD
J Nerv Ment Dis. Jul 2011; 199(7): 440–444.
"In conclusion, the results suggest that a positive relationship between rates of infection with T. gondii and suicide is apparent in women of postmenopausal age."