individuals – Toxoplasma gondii & Human Phenotype

Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii infection in cancer patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis

February 4, 2020
Anvari, D., Sharif, M., Sarvi, S., Aghayan, S. A., Gholami, S., Pagheh, A. S., Hosseini, S. A., Saberi, R., Chegeni, T. N., Hosseininejad, Z., Daryani, A.
Microbial Pathogenesis 2019, 129: 30 - 42

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Lack of circulating toxoplasma gondii DNA in seropositive patients with bipolar or schizophrenia spectrum disorders

February 1, 2020
Galli, L., Del Grande, C. Rindi, L., Mangia, C., Mangano, V., Schiavi, E., Masci, I., Pinto, B., Kramer, L., Dell'Osso, L., Bruschi, F.
Psychiatry Research :2019, 173: 706 - 711

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Sero-prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii and associated risk factors among psychiatric outpatients attending University of Gondar Hospital, Northwest Ethiopia

January 31, 2020
Achaw, B., Tesfa, H., Zeleke, A.J., Worku, L., Addisu, A., Yigzaw, N., Tegegne, Y.
BMC Infectious Diseases 2019, 19 Ethiopia

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BackgroundToxoplasmosis is caused by an obligatory intracellular coccidian protozoan organism, Toxoplasma gondii. It has a worldwide distribution, affecting one-third of the world population. Psychiatric patients have a higher risk of exposure to Toxoplasma gondii infection due to lack of good personal hygiene. The burden of toxoplasmosis among psychiatric patients in Ethiopia has not been studied extensively. Thus, the study aimed to determine the seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii and associated risk factors among psychiatric outpatients at the University of Gondar Comprehensive and Specialized Hospital Psychiatric clinic.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted at the University of Gondar Comprehensive and Specialized Hospital from February to May 2018. Venous blood was collected from 304 study participants (152 psychiatric outpatients and 152 control groups). Anti-toxoplasma antibodies were determined using Onsite Toxo immunoglobulin G (IgG) and immunoglobulin M (IgM) Rapid Test. A Chi-square test was carried out to compare the two groups and a logistic regression analysis was conducted to check the association between variables. P-value less than 0.05 was taken as statistically significant.ResultsThe seroprevalence rate of anti-Toxoplasma gondii IgG antibodies was 33.6, and 16.4% in the psychiatric outpatients and the control samples, respectively. Anti-Toxoplasma gondii IgM sero-prevalence was 1.3% in the former patients and 3.9% in the latter group. Owing cat (AOR=2.862 95% CI=1.445-5.666 P=0.003), cleaning cat excreta (AOR=2.966 95% CI=1.317-2.652 P=0.007), and farming (AOR=2.058 95% CI=1.018-4.163 P=0.045) were found to be significantly associated with the sero-prevalence of anti-Toxoplasma gondii IgG antibody.ConclusionsThis study highlighted that, the prevalence of anti-Toxoplasma gondii IgG antibodies was significantly higher in psychiatric outpatients than the control group (p=0.001). Cat ownership, cleaning of cat excreta, and farming were found to be statistically significantly associated with the seroprevalence of anti-Toxoplasma gondii IgG antibody.

The association between Toxoplasma and the psychosis continuum in a general population setting

September 4, 2018
Lindgren, M., Torniainen-Holm, M., Harkanen, T., Dickerson, F., Yolken, R. H., Suvisaari, J.
Schizophrenia Research 2018; 193: 329-335

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Toxoplasma antibody titers in mania: A cross sectional study

August 31, 2018
Mangot, A. G., Shivakumar, V., Saini, V., Subbanna, M., Kalmady, S. V., Venkatasubramanian, G.
Journal of Krishna Institute of Medical Sciences University 2018; 7: 13-20

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Immunoglobulin sub-class distribution in bipolar disorder and schizophrenia: potential relationship with latent Toxoplasma Gondii infection

August 31, 2018
Bengoufa, H. D., Godin, O., Doukhan, R., Guen, E. L.,Daban-Huard, C. , Bennabi, M., Delavest, M., Lepine, J. P., Boukouaci, W., Laouamri,H., Houenou, J., Jamain, S., Richard, J. R. , Lecorvosier, P. , Yolken, R., Rajagopal, K., Leboyer, M., Tamouza, R.
Bmc Psychiatry 2018; 18

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Immunoglobulin sub-class distribution in bipolar disorder and schizophrenia: potential relationship with latent Toxoplasma Gondii infection

February 12, 2018
Hamdani,N. ,Bengoufa, D. , Godin, O., Doukhan, R.., Le Guen,E., Daban-Huard, C. , Bennabi, M. ,Delavest, M., Lepine, J. P., Boukouaci, W. , Laouamri, H. , Houenou,J., Jamain, S., Richard,J. R. , Lecorvosier, P. , Yolken,R. , Rajagopal, K. , Leboyer, M. , Tamouza, R.
BMC Psychiatry,10.1186/s12888-018-1821-9, Article Number 239

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Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii infection in children with central nervous system disorders in Mansoura, Egypt: a case-control study

February 12, 2018
El-Beshbishi,S. N. , El-Tantawy,N. L, Elzeky, S. M., Abdalaziz , K. F. ,Atia, R. A.
Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 2018;112: 555-560

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Seroepidemiological study of Toxoplasma gondii infection among psychiatric patients in Mashhad, Northeast of Iran

October 3, 2017
Abdollahian, E., Shafiei, R., Mokhber, N., Kalantar, K., Fata, A.
Iranian Journal of Parasitology 2017; 12: 117-122

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Infection and inflammation in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder

January 3, 2017
Tanaka, T., Matsuda, T., Hayes, L. N., Yang, S. J., Rodriguez, K., Severance, E. G., Yolken, R. H., Sawa, A., Eaton, W. W.
Neuroscience Research 2017; 115: 59-63

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Bipolar disorder with psychotic features and ocular toxoplasmosis

January 3, 2017
Del Grande, C., Contini, C., Schiavi, E., Rutigliano, G., Maritati, M., Seraceni, S., Pinto, B., Dell'Osso, L., Bruschi, F.
Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 2017; 205: 192-195

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Latent Toxoplasma infection and higher Toxoplasma gondii immunoglobulin G levels are associated with worse neurocognitive functioning in HIV-infected adults

October 6, 2016
Bharti, A. R., McCutchan, A., Deutsch, R., Smith, D. M., Ellis, R. J., Cherner, M., Woods, S. P., Heaton, R. K., Grant, I., Letendre, S. L.
Clinical Infectious Diseases 2016; 63: 1655-1660.

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Latent toxoplasmosis is associated with neurocognitive impairment in young adults with and without chronic HIV infection

October 6, 2016
Ene, L., Marcotte, T. D., Umlauf, A., Grancea, C., Temereanca, A., Bharti, A., Achim, C. L., Letendre, S., Ruta, S. M.,
Journal of Neuroimmunology 2016; 299: 1-7.

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Toxoplasma gondii-A gastrointestinal pathogen associated with human brain diseases

October 3, 2016
Severance, E. G., Xiao, J., Jones-Brando, L., Sabunciyan, S., Li, Y., Pletnikov, M., Prandovszky, E., Yolken, R.
In: Cryan JF, Clarke G, eds. Gut Microbiome and Behavior 2016: pp. 143-163. (International Review of Neurobiology).

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Serious psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression are important causes of mortality and morbidity worldwide. While these are primarily diseases involving altered brain functioning, numerous studies have documented increased rates of gastrointestinal inflammation and dysfunction in many individuals with these disorders. Toxoplasma gondii is an apicomplexan protozoan intracellular parasite with a widespread distribution in both developed and developing countries. Toxoplasma organisms enter the ecosystem through the shedding of oocysts by Toxoplasma-infected felines. In almost all cases of postnatal human infection, Toxoplasma enters its hosts through the intestinal tract either by the ingestion of oocysts or by the consumption of meat from food animals which themselves were infected by Toxoplasma oocysts. It had previously been thought that most cases of Toxoplasma infection in immune competent children and adults were inapparent and asymptomatic. However, recent studies cast doubt on this concept as exposure to Toxoplasma has been associated with a range of acute and chronic symptoms. Of particular note has been the finding of an increased rate of a range of neurological and psychiatric disorders associated with serological evidence of Toxoplasma exposure. A role of Toxoplasma infection in brain diseases is also supported by the consistent finding of altered cognition and behavior in animal models of infections. Much of the attention relating to the role of Toxoplasma infection in neuropsychiatric disorders has focused on the brain, where Toxoplasma tissue cysts can persist for extended periods of time. However, recent discoveries relating to the role of the gastrointestinal tract in cognition and behavior suggest that Toxoplasma may also increase susceptibility to human brain diseases through immune activation, particularly involving the gastrointestinal mucosa. The study of the pathways relating to the pathobiology and immunology of Toxoplasma infection may provide insights into the pathogenesis of a range of human neuropsychiatric disorders as well as into cognitive functioning in otherwise healthy individuals.

Exposure to perinatal infections and bipolar disorder: A systematic review

May 24, 2016
Barichello, T., Badawy, M., Pitcher, M. R., Saigal, P., Generoso, J. S., Goularte, J. A., Simoes, L. R., Quevedo, J., Carvalho, A. F.
Curr Mol Med 2016; 16: 106-118

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The correlation between Toxoplasma gondii infection and prenatal depression in pregnant women

January 4, 2016
Shiadeh, M. N., Rostami, A., Pearce, B. D., Gholipourmalekabadi, M., Newport, D. J., Danesh, M., Mehravar, S., Seyyedtabaei, S. J.
European Journal of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases 2016; 35: 1829-1835

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Seropositivity and serointensity of Toxoplasma gondii antibodies and DNA among patients with schizophrenia

October 29, 2015
Omar, A., Bakar, O. C., Adam, N. F., Osman, H., Osman, A., Suleiman, A. H., Manaf, M. R. A., Selamat, M. I.
Korean Journal of Parasitology 2015; 53: 29-34

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Association between latent toxoplasmosis and clinical course of schizophrenia – continuous course of the disease is characteristic for Toxoplasma gondii-infected patients

October 9, 2015
Celik, T., Kartalci, S., Aytas, O., Akarsu, G. A., Gozukara, H., Unal, S.
Folia Parasitologica 2015; 62

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Seroprevalence of anti-Toxoplasma gondii and anti-Borrelia species antibodies in patients with schizophrenia: a case-control study from western Turkey

October 9, 2015
Cevizci, S., Celik, M., Akcali, A., Oyekcin, D. G., Sahin, O. O., Bakar, C.
World Journal of Biological Psychiatry 2015; 16: 230-236

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Treatment with anti-toxoplasmic activity (TATA) for Toxoplasma positive patients with bipolar disorders or schizophrenia: A cross-sectional study

October 9, 2015
Fond, G., Boyer, L., Gaman, A., Laouamri, H., Attiba, D., Richard, J. R., Delavest, M., Houenou, J., Le Corvoisier, P., Charron, D., Krishnamoorthy, R., Oliveira, J., Tamouza, R., Yolken, R., Dickerson, F., Leboyer, M., Hamdani, N.
Journal of Psychiatric Research 2015; 63: 58-64.

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Objective: The association between Toxoplasma gondii seropositivity and respectively Bipolar Disorder (BD) and Schizophrenia/Schizoaffective disorder (SZ) is one of the most studied link between one pathogen and psychiatric disorders. The aim of the present study was thus to retrospectively determine if the administration of an antipsychotic and/or a mood stabilizer having known in vitro Anti-Toxoplasmic Activity (TATA+) was associated with a better clinical outcome in a population of 152 BD or 114 SZ patients and seropositive for T gondii infection compared to patients receiving a treatment without anti-toxoplasmic activity (TATA-). Methods: This multicenter study was conducted in an academic public hospital during a 3-years period between 2009 and 2011. All consecutive inpatients and outpatients with SZ or BD diagnosis with a stable treatment for more than 4 weeks were recruited. socio-demographic and clinical characteristics measured with validated scales as well as a serological status for toxoplasmic infection were included. Treatments were classified according to their in vitro antitoxoplasmic activity. A multivariate model was used to determine the clinical characteristics that were significantly different between patients receiving a treatment with no antitoxoplasmic activity compared to others. Results: BD patients with positive serum antibodies against T gondii presented more lifetime depressive episodes (p = 0.048) after adjustment forage, sex and sociodemographic characteristics when treated by drug having no anti-toxo activity, compared to patients having received drugs with anti-toxo activity. A significant difference was not found in BD toxonegative patients and in SZ toxopositive or toxonegative patients. Conclusions: It seems to be of importance to consider prescribing a drug with a clear anti-toxoplasmic activity (TATA+) for BD patients seropositive to T. gondii, in particular valproate that was found as the mood stabilizer with the highest antitoxoplasmic activity. Prospective randomized controlled trials are warranted to confirm this preliminary data.

Cognitive deterioration among bipolar disorder patients infected by Toxoplasma gondii is correlated to interleukin 6 levels

October 6, 2015
Hamdani, N., Daban-Huard, C., Lajnef, M., Gadel, R., Le Corvoisier, P., Delavest, M., Carde, S., Lepine, J. P., Jamain, S., Houenou, J., Galeh, B., Richard, J. R., Aoki, M., Charron, D., Krishnamoorthy, R., Yolken, R., Dickerson, F., Tamouza, R., Leboyer, M.
Journal of Affective Disorders 2015; 179: 161-166

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Toxoplasma gondii and anxiety disorders in a community-based sample

October 6, 2015
Markovitz, A. A., Simanek, A. M., Yolken, R. H., Galea, S., Koenen, K. C., Chen, S., Aiello, A. E.
Brain Behavior and Immunity 2015; 43: 192-197

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Meta-analysis of anti-Toxoplasma gondii IgM antibodies in acute psychosis

October 6, 2015
Monroe, J.M., Buckley ,P.F., Miller, B.J.
Schizophrenia Bulletin 2015; 41: 989-998

Seropositivity and serointensity of Toxoplasma gondii antibodies and DNA among patients with schizophrenia

October 6, 2015
Omar, A., Bakar, O. C., Adam, N. F., Osman, H., Osman, A., Suleiman, A. H., Manaf, M. R. A., Selamat, M. I.
Korean Journal of Parasitology 2015; 53: 29-34.

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Immune alterations in acute bipolar depression

May 28, 2015
Dickerson, F., Katsafanas, E., Schweinfurth, L. A. B., Savage, C. L. G., Stallings, C., Origoni, A., Khushalani, S., Lillehoj, E., Yolken, R.
Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica 2015; 132: 204-210

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Seroprevalence and associated risk factors of Toxoplasma gondii infection in psychiatric patients: a case-control study in eastern China

May 25, 2015
Cong, W., Dong, W., Bai, L., Wang, X. Y., Ni, X. T., Qian, A. D., Zhu, X. Q.
Epidemiology and Infection 2015; 143: 3103-3109

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Mortality in schizophrenia: Clinical and serological predictors

October 10, 2014
Dickerson, F., Stallings, C., Origoni, A., Schroeder, J., Khushalani, S., Yolken, R.
Schizophrenia Bulletin 2014; 40: 796-803

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Is latent infection with Toxoplasma gondii a risk factor for suicidal behavior?

October 11, 2013
Postolache, T.T., Cook, T.B.
Expert Review of Anti-Infective Therapy 2013; 11: 339-342

The relationship between Toxoplasma gondii infection and mood disorders in the third national health and nutrition survey

October 12, 2012
Pearce, B.D., Kruszon-Moran, D., Jones, J.L.
Biological Psychiatry 2012; 72: 290-295

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Toxoplasma infection in schizophrenia patients: A comparative study with control group

October 19, 2011
Alipour, A., Shojaee, S., Mohebali, M., Tehranidoost, M., Masoleh, F. A., Keshavarz, H.
Iranian Journal of Parasitology 2011; 6: 31-37

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Toxoplasma gondii infection and schizophrenia: A case control study in a low Toxoplasma seroprevalence Mexican population

October 19, 2011
Alvarado-Esquivel, C., Urbina-Alvarez, J. D., Estrada-Martinez, S., Torres-Castorena, A., Molotla-de-Leon, G., Liesenfeld, O., Dubey, J. P.
Parasitology International 2011; 60: 151-155

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Antibodies to infectious agents and the positive symptom dimension of subclinical psychosis: The TRAILS study

October 16, 2011
Wang, H., Yolken, R. H., Hoekstra, P. J., Burger, H., Klein, H. C.
Schizophrenia Research 2011; 129: 47-51

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Serological survey of Toxoplasma gondii in schizophrenia patients referred to Psychiatric Hospital, Sari City, Iran

October 19, 2010
Daryani, A., Sharif, M., Hosseini, S. H., Karimi, S. A., Gholami, S.
Tropical Biomedicine 2010; 27: 476-482

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Toxoplasmosis as a cause for behaviour disorders – overview of evidence and mechanisms

October 19, 2010
Fekadu A, Shibre T, Cleare AJ.
Folia Parasitologica 2010; 57: 105-113

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The diagnosis of a personality disorder increases the likelihood for seropositivity to Toxoplasma gondii in psychiatric patients

October 19, 2010
Hinze-Selch, D., Daubener, W., Erdag, S., Wilms, S.
Folia Parasitol (Praha) 2010; 57: 129-135

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The association of infectious agents and schizophrenia

October 19, 2010
Krause, D., Matz, J., Weidinger, E., Wagner, J., Wildenauer, A., Obermeier, M., Riedel, M., Muller, N.
World Journal of Biological Psychiatry 2010; 11: 739-743

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Possible role of toxoplasmosis in patients with first-episode schizophrenia

October 19, 2010
Tanyuksel, M., Uzun, O., Araz, E., Koru, O., Babur, C.
Turkish Journal of Medical Sciences 2010; 40: 399-404

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The role of latent toxoplasmosis in the aetiopathogenesis of schizophrenia – the risk factor or an indication of a contact with cat?

October 19, 2010
Yuksel, P., Alpay, N., Babur, C., Bayar, R., Saribas, S., Karakose, A. R., Aksoy, C., Aslan, M., Mehmetali, S., Kilic, S., Balcioglu, I., Hamanca, O., Dirican, A., Kucukbasmaci, O., Oner, A., Torun, M. M., Kocazeybek, B.
Folia Parasitologica 2010; 57: 121-128

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A possible relationship between Toxoplasma gondii and schizophrenia: A seroprevalence study

October 26, 2009
Dogruman-Al, F., Aslan, S., Yalcin, S., Kustimur, S., Turk, S.
International Journal of Psychiatry in Clinical Practice 2009; 13: 82-87.

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Selected infectious agents and risk of schizophrenia among US military personnel

October 26, 2008
Nielbuhr, D.W., Millikan, A. M., Cowan, D. N., Yolken, R., Li, Y. Z., Weber, N. S.
American Journal of Psychiatry 2008; 165: 99-106

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