Toxoplasma gondii News and Research

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Lysine methylation found to control movement in single-celled parasites

LMU researchers identify a molecular mechanism that enables single-celled parasites to switch on the machinery they need to move and invade host cells.

28 Aug 2026

Scientists identify parasite-specific protein linked to chronic Toxoplasma infections

Toxoplasma gondii, or Toxoplasma, is a parasite that infects hundreds of millions of people around the world.

11 Aug 2026

What medicine-exposed rats reveal about the next urban zoonotic threat

Researchers found that more than half of urban rats sampled from low-income communities in Salvador, Brazil, carried active pharmaceutical ingredients in their brain tissue. These pollutants were associated with altered zoonotic infection patterns, including lower Leptospira infection probability in rats carrying azithromycin and higher Capillaria infection probability in rats carrying citalopram.

22 May 2026

New research reveals how parasites break out of host cells

Parasites are a major global health problem, underlying many human diseases worldwide. For example, Plasmodium falciparum, the parasite responsible for malaria, plays a well-established; however, its complex life cycle is not yet fully understood.

15 Apr 2026

Fluorescent imaging enables real-time observation of Toxoplasma gondii's growth

It infects nearly one-third of the global population, yet its microscopic size makes the Toxoplasma gondii parasite difficult for scientists to study.

23 Mar 2026

Scientists offer new insight into how common parasite T. gondii causes disease

A University of California, Riverside team of scientists has found that Toxoplasma gondii, a common parasite affecting up to one-third of the global population, is far more complex than previously believed.

27 Jan 2026

New insight into how our bodies keep brain parasite Toxoplasma gondii in check

The parasite that may already live in your brain can infect the very immune cells trying to destroy it, but new UVA Health research reveals how our bodies keep it under control.

7 Jan 2026

Review maps Toxoplasma hotspots: Half in Eastern Europe infected by age 44

Researchers systematically reviewed and modeled Toxoplasma gondii seroprevalence across 25 European countries. The study found striking regional differences, with highest infection levels in eastern and western Europe and lowest in the UK and northern regions.

1 Sep 2025

Mitochondria fight infection by starving parasites of essential nutrients

You've heard that mitochondria are the "powerhouse of the cell." Now get ready for "mitochondria are the infantry of the cell!"

26 Aug 2025

Targeting RAP proteins for next-generation malaria treatments

A University of California, Riverside-led team has made an advance in the basic understanding of Plasmodium falciparum, the parasite responsible for the deadliest form of human malaria, that could make novel, highly targeted anti-malarial therapies possible.

1 Jul 2025

Research reveals how a microscopic parasite disrupts brain function

A team of scientists at the University of California, Riverside, explains in a paper published in PLOS Pathogens how a microscopic parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, can significantly disrupt brain function, even when it infects only a small number of neurons.

19 Jun 2025

New insights into how the immune system handles latent parasite infections

Most humans have long-lived infections in various tissues-including in the nervous system-that typically do not result in disease.

28 Mar 2025

CDC study identifies leading culprits of foodborne illness

Researchers from the CDC and Colorado School of Public Health estimate that seven major pathogens caused 9.9 million foodborne illnesses in the US in 2019. Norovirus led illness and hospitalization counts, while Salmonella caused the most deaths.

25 Mar 2025

Study unveils how Toxoplasma gondii parasites escape drug treatment

A study by Indiana University School of Medicine researchers sheds new light on how Toxoplasma gondii parasites make the proteins they need to enter a dormant stage that allows them to escape drug treatment.

10 Dec 2024

Metagenomic sequencing improves detection of rare pathogens in CNS infections

New research shows that metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) over seven years increased pathogen detection in challenging CNS infections, identifying rare and unexpected microbes often missed by standard testing.

13 Nov 2024

Optical metabolic imaging reveals how Toxoplasma infection changes host cell metabolism

Toxoplasma gondii is a parasite responsible for toxoplasmosis, a lifelong chronic infection prevalent in about 30% of the human population.

12 Jul 2024

RNA virus hiding in common human parasite may exacerbate toxoplasmosis

An international team led by researchers at the University of Toronto has found a new RNA virus that they believe is hitching a ride with a common human parasite.

31 May 2024

New point-of-care test revolutionizes toxoplasmosis screening

An inexpensive, accurate test that detects infections with the parasite Toxoplasma gondii can provide results within 30 minutes from a finger-prick in a doctor's office or within an hour from a small blood sample tested in a local medical laboratory.

28 May 2024

Researchers discover protein key to toxoplasmosis pathogen multiplication

Researchers have identified a protein that evolved concurrently with the emergence of cellular compartments crucial for the multiplication of the toxoplasmosis pathogen.

16 Feb 2024

Link between gut dysbiosis and chronic diseases explored in new study

Study explores the ecological causes of gut dysbiosis and its link to human diseases, revealing how imbalances in gut microbiota composition, influenced by host-derived factors like oxygen and nitrate, contribute to various chronic conditions.

5 Dec 2023