Invasion of the mind snatchers

• Autores: Colin Barras
• Localización: New scientist, ISSN 0262-4079, Nº. 3023, 2015, págs. 42-45
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • Barras talks about Toxoplasma gondii, a single-celled protozoan that infects many birds and mammals but reproduces sexually in just one group: cats. Humans generally acquire it by eating undercooked meat and unwashed fruit and vegetables, or from cleaning litter trays of cats that have recently been infected. Pregnant women and people with immune disorders such as HIV are advised to avoid these risks because Toxoplasma can occasionally be fatal to a fetus or to someone with a compromised immune system. But, for most people, a mild flu-like illness is the worst they might expect. The symptoms of toxoplasmosis can be so innocuous, in fact, that most people don't even seek treatment. Soon, usually without their ever knowing they have the parasite, it enters a latent phase: it forms cysts, mostly in the brain, and hunkers down inside them, sitting dormant for decades, apparently doing nothing.