Watch out for deadly parasite infections from cats

Women infected with a parasite on cats are more likely to commit suicide than others. However, scientists have not explained why.

The parasite Toxoplasma gondii not only resides on cats but also lives on any warm-blooded animal. People may be infected with T. gondii parasites when exposed to cat feces, or eat less cooked meat, unwashed vegetables. When entered into the human body, T. gondii can still exist in the brain and muscle cells. They are protected by the follicles so they are not attacked by the body's immune system.

The proliferation of T.gondii parasites in the intestines of cats.(Source: Livescience)

Some studies suggest that this parasite is involved in many health problems such as schizophrenia, functional neurosis and brain cancer. But scientists still do not understand whether this parasite is the direct cause of these diseases, or just a secondary effect.

The new study suggests that confinement related to suicidal behavior also has similar limitations. Researchers cannot be certain that parasites directly cause an infected person to commit suicide. They only found that infected women tend to have 1.5 times more suicide than non-infected people.

'We cannot say for certain that T. gondii causes women to commit suicide, but we find a link between these two factors ,' Teodor Postolache, a psychiatrist at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and also "We plan to continue our research to further clarify this relationship," said the research leader.

Up to one third of the world's population is infected with T. gondii, but does not show any symptoms. Experts advise pregnant women not to clean cat litter because they may accidentally cause the fetus to become infected with the parasite directly.

When living on host animals, T.gondii plays cat and mouse games. Rats infected with parasites lose their sense of fear of cat's urine. T. gondii also changes the rat's brain so that the cat's urine smell becomes attractive to the mouse, leaving the mouse closer to the enemy. That's why T. gondii is constantly multiplying in cat's gut.

Reference: Livescience