The common parasite, T. gondii needs cats. The feline digestive tract is the only environment for their sexual form of reproduction. Cats are necessary for T. gondii to reproduce. T. gondii has the ability to change the behavior of its rodent hosts, causing them not only to lose all fear of their predators, but to seek them.

T. gondii Can be Transmitted from Cats to Humans – There is No CURE!!!

Being bitten by a cat, however, apparently does not cause the transmission of T. gondii (Westling K, Jorup-Ronstrom C, Evengard B, Toxoplasmosis not transmitted by cat bite, but high prevalence of antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii in patients bitten by their own cat, Scand J Infect Dis2010;42:687–690).

Important  Information  for  Pregnant  Women!

Parasite-Infected Rodents Attracted to Cat Odor

Science Daily (Aug. 17, 2011) — New research shows how a brain parasite can manipulate rodent fear responses for the parasite’s own benefit. The study, authored by Patrick House and Dr. Robert Sapolsky of Stanford University and released this week in PlUS One, addressed how the single-celled parasite Toxoplasma gondii makes infected rodents more likely to spend time near cat odors.

The study finds Toxoplasma infected male rats have altered activation in brain regions involved in fear and increased activation of brain regions involved in sexual attraction after exposure to cat odors. The findings may help explain the biological bases of innate fear and sexual attraction.

The Life Cycle of the T. gondii Parasite

T. gondii life cycle has three stages: cyst, oocyst (hard-shelled “eggs”), or tachyzoite. A cat may eat cysts in infected rodents or birds, or other raw meat, whereupon the organisms will begin to multiply in the wall of the small intestine, producing the second stage, oocysts. These are excreted in the feces for two to three weeks. Then they may become spores, and become infectious to other animals, including humans. Most exposed cats shed oocysts during acute Toxoplasma infection, but not after. Oocysts are very hardy and can survive in moist shaded soil or sand for months.

In the intestine, some Toxoplasma organisms multiply as tachyzoites, which spread to other sites in the body. This stage eventually ends, and a “resting” stage produces cysts in the muscles and brain. Most of these cysts probably remain dormant indefinitely.

Per University of California – Davis, “Since we can never be 100% certain that a mouse could not have found its way into one of our cats, the safest policy is to assume that any cat’s feces may potentially carry toxoplasma oocytes. Women of Childbearing Age who are of child-bearing age, or who are contemplating pregnancy, and who work with cats in a research setting should consult with the occupational health physician at employee health services and discuss the advisability of having their titer (is a way of expressing concentration) to T. gondii measured as a part of their routine prenatal care.”

The medical profession and hopefully most women of childbearing age know that if you’re pregnant you don’t want to get near cat feces. The problem is the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii, for which cats are the principal host. The microscopic parasites reproduce in the cat’s gut, the eggs are excreted, and by a process from oral infection, the critters wind up in your brain and muscles, where they create tiny cysts, leading to a condition known as toxoplasmosis. Unpromising as this sounds, the symptoms of toxoplasmosis are generally mild to nonexistent in adults, which is good, because roughly a third of all humans are infected, with the rate in some tropical countries approaching 100 percent.

“If a woman initially becomes infected while pregnant, there’s a significant chance the T. gondii will migrate across the placenta to her unborn child. Most toxoplasmosis after-effects become apparent a few months after birth only – sometimes even only in adulthood. The most common are ocular anomalies which can lead to loss of sight. The baby may suffer from ghastly results ranging from convulsions, hydrocephalus, calcification of the skull severe neurological damage, cerebral palsy, seizures, and mental retardation to death. Women infected prior to pregnancy don’t run the same risk, which no doubt explains why we haven’t seen an epidemic of toxo-induced birth defects–the parasite’s ubiquitousness confers a sort of immunity.” (UC Davis)

The link between toxoplasmosis and birth defects has long been recognized, scientists now suspect that T. gondii may cause schizophrenia too. T. gondii may cause schizophrenia and may do so by producing or triggering the production of a hallucinogenic chemical” (“Genes, Germs, and Schizophrenia,” Ledgerwood et al, Perspectives in Biology and Medicine, 2003). Mindful that rodents are often an intermediate host for the parasite, the authors go on to say, “Production of such a compound may have been favored by natural selection because an infected, hallucinating rodent would be more easily captured by a cat.” In other words, schizophrenia in humans may be a side effect of T. gondii’s attempt to set cats up with a steady supply of tripping mice, the better to ensure its own reproductive success.

Being bitten by a cat, however, apparently does not cause the transmission of T. gondii (Westling K, Jorup-Ronstrom C, Evengard B, Toxoplasmosis not transmitted by cat bite, but high prevalence of antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii in patients bitten by their own cat, Scand J Infect Dis2010;42:687–690).

Many Ways Cats Can Infect Humans

Some of the means of transmission require no contact whatever between cats and humans, e.g., through tissue cysts in undercooked lamb, drinking water infected with oocytes, oocytes deposited by a neighborhood cat in your garden. For this reason, attempts to show a correlation between having antibodies to T. gondii and past contact with cats have yielded very inconsistent results.

Toxoplasmosis is a Disease That Comes from Cats

Toxoplosmosis Gondii (T.gondii) causes Toxoplasmosis (Toxoplasmosis is used when a warm-blooded body is infected. When we are infected with T. gondii, we have Toxoplasmosis. Cat infections as well as other mammals and birds caused by a parasite called Toxoplasma gondii. Toxoplasma infection is common, but full-blown disease is rare. T. gondii is important because virtually all warm-blooded animals, including man, can become infected with it. Domestic, wild, and feral cats can transmit Toxoplasma infection to humans.

T. gondii must Live in a Cats intestines to Reproduce

Cats have a 20% to 60% infection rate with T. gondii. Its prevalence is related to factors including the ingestion of infected animals such as rodents and birds or raw meat. Stray and feral cats have a higher incidence of infection than pet cats, and older cats have more of a chance of acquiring it.

Toxoplasmosis is most common in cats less than two years old, possibly because of their poorly developed immune response. In an older cat, a recurrent infection may be due to the presence of feline leukemia virus or feline immunodeficiency virus, which suppresses its immune response.

Symptoms of toxoplasmosis include anorexia, weight loss, lethargy, difficulty breathing (because of pneumonia), eye inflammation, and fever. Other symptoms are vomiting and diarrhea, neurological symptoms, swollen lymph nodes, and jaundice.

Most cats show no symptoms of infection with Toxoplasma.

Sometimes toxoplasmosis occurs, mostly to kittens and young adult cats, with lethargy, depression, loss of appetite, and fever. Pneumonia is often a major symptom. Liver inflammation may lead to vomiting, diarrhea, and jaundice. The pancreas may be inflamed and the lymph nodes enlarged. Other signs are inflammation of the retina, abnormal-sized pupils, blindness, lack of coordination, personality changes, circling, ear twitching, difficulty in chewing and swallowing food, seizures, and loss of control over urination and defecation.

As Much as 50% of the Human Population in the United States are Infected with T. gondii

20% to 80% of all domestic animals are infected with Toxoplasma, harboring its cyst form. If given the opportunity, the cyst can produce disease in immunocompromised patients, such as people with AIDS.

Can I “catch” toxoplasmosis from my cat?

Because cats only shed the organism for a few days in their entire life, the chance of human exposure is small. Owning a cat does not mean you will be infected with the disease. It is unlikely that you would be exposed to the parasite by touching an infected cat, because cats usually do not carry the parasite on their fur. It is also unlikely that you can become infected through cat bites or scratches. In addition, cats kept indoors that do not hunt prey or are not fed raw meat are not likely to be infected with T. gondii.

In the United States, people are much more likely to become infected through eating raw meat and unwashed fruits and vegetables than from handling cat feces.

How are people infected with Toxoplasma gondii?

Contact with oocyst-contaminated soil is probably the major means by which many species-rodents, ground-feeding birds, sheep, goats, pigs, and cattle, as well as humans living in developing countries-are exposed to Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii).

Pregnant Mothers Face Danger to Unborn Child – Dire Possible Consequences

The greatest concern for humans is transmission of Toxoplasma from mother to fetus. Up to 45% of American women between the ages of 20 and 39 have already been exposed to Toxoplasma and are therefore immune. However, in mothers who first acquire Toxoplasma infection during their pregnancy, about one-third to one-half of their infants born to mothers are also infected. Toxoplasma infection of the fetus is least common.

Toxoplasma Disease is Most Severe, if the Mother has Been Infected During the first Trimester of Pregnancy

Toxoplasma infection is most common, but the disease is least severe or without symptoms, if the infection occurs during the third trimester. Most women infected during pregnancy have no symptoms of the infection themselves, but there is about a 40% chance that the fetus will acquire the infection, and be born prematurely or even stillborn. In about 10% of these cases, severe neurological or eye disease will result. Toxoplasma infection results in over three thousand human congenital infections annually in the United States, most of them with no symptoms. In symptomatic individuals, symptoms may appear at different times: at birth, or weeks, months, or even years later.

AIDS Patients Have a High Mortality Rate

In AIDS patients or those being treated for cancer or organ transplantation, enlargement of the lymph nodes, eye and neurologic disturbances, respiratory problems, and heart disease are common symptoms.

Contact with Stray and Feral Cats be Risky

The good news is that most studies show that contact with a pet cat or a neighbor’s cat will not increase the risk of acquiring toxoplasmosis, unless these animals are allowed to roam and hunt or eat raw meat.

Blood Serology Tests May Indicate Recent Infection with T. gondii

Blood Serology test may not a definitive diagnosis of toxoplasmosis. Its diagnosis relies on the history of the patient, symptoms, and the results of laboratory tests, including an antibody titer test and microscopic examination of tissues. If a healthy cat has high antibody levels, that means it has been previously infected and is now probably immune and not excreting oocysts to other animals. If there is no antibody, the cat can become infected and will shed oocysts for one to two weeks after exposure.

Possible Treatments

Pyrimethamine and sulfadiazine are the two drugs used to treat toxoplasmosis. They act together to inhibit Toxoplasma reproduction. However, pyrimethamine may be unpalatable or even toxic to some cats. Another choice is the antibiotic clindamycin, which has fewer side effects. Alternative veterinarians recommend modalities such as herbs, homeopathy, and acupuncture to treat the symptoms of toxoplasmosis.

No Vaccine is Available

What can you do to control the spread of Toxoplasma? Restrict your pet cats from access to rodents and birds, and give them only cooked meat, commercially prepared cat food, and pasteurized dairy products. Don’t allow them to scavenge in garbage cans.

Transmission of oocysts present in garden soil, children’s sandboxes, litter boxes, and anywhere cats may defecate can be avoided by wearing rubber gloves during contact with contaminated soil or litter. Wash your hands thoroughly after contact. Cover sandboxes to prevent cats from defecating in them. Get rid of feces from litter boxes every day, and disinfect them with scalding water or dry heat; chemical disinfection is not effective in destroying oocysts.

If you are pregnant, or plan to become pregnant soon, test your cats for antibodies to Toxoplasma. As mentioned above, do not allow cats access to birds, rodents, uncooked meat, and also unpasteurized dairy products. Don’t handle litter boxes; have another person change them daily. Stay away from free-roaming cats because they can be contaminated with oocysts. Keep any outdoor cat from contact with bedclothes and any furnishings that you use. Don’t handle a cat that seems ill. Wash uncooked vegetables thoroughly before eating. Wash hands thoroughly with soap and water after contact with soil and cats.

Does contact with a cat increase the risk of infection?

Recent research indicates contact with cats does not increase the risk of T gondii infection of people.

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