Schizophrenia and toxoplasmosis: analysis of their association


DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.18565/epidem.2020.10.4.88-92

Kovaleva V.A., Goncharov D.B., Zhuravlev A.Yu., Abbazova E.V., Titova I.V.

1) Honorary Academician N.F. Gamaleya National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology, Ministry of Health of Russia, Moscow, Russia; 2) M.V. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
Toxoplasmosis is a common parasitic disease in humans and animals, which is caused by the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii. About one-third of the world’s population is infected with Toxoplasma. It used to be that toxoplasmosis was asymptomatic in healthy people. However, there is more and more evidence that latent toxoplasmosis alters human behavior and affects the development of neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative diseases, including schizophrenia. The paper considers the facts proving the impact of Toxoplasma invasion on the development of schizophrenia: there is a higher rate of Toxoplasma infection in schizophrenic patients than in the local population; the appearance of clinical schizophrenia symptoms in T. gondii-infected patients; an antiprotozoal effect of some antipsychotic drugs; an association of latent toxoplasmosis with treatment-resistant schizophrenia. It also discusses possible mechanisms by which T. gondii may affect the development of schizophrenia when applied to the classical hypotheses of this disease and the prospects for studying the association.

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About the Autors


Vasilisa A. Kovaleva, Laboratory Researcher, Honorary Academician N.F. Gamaleya National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology, Ministry of Health of Russia, Moscow, Russia; e-mail: vasilisa.kovaliova@gmail.com; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0215-4938
Dmitriy B. Goncharov, Cand. Biol. Sci., Head of Laboratory of protozoan infections, N.F. Gamaleya Federal Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology, Ministry of Health of Russia, Moscow, Russia; e-mail: goncharov_toxo@mail.ru; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0250-4902
Andrey Yu. Zhuravlev, BD, Professor, Biological Faculty, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia; e-mail ayzhur@mail.ru; ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1611-6916
Evgeniya V. Abbazova, Cand. Med. Sci., Researcher, Honorary Academician N.F. Gamaleya National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology, Ministry of Health of Russia, Moscow, Russia; e-mail: janifer@inbox.ru; ORCID: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6328-8142
Irina V. Titova, Cand. Med. Sci., Senior Researcher, Honorary Academician N.F. Gamaleya National Research Center for Epidemiology and Microbiology, Ministry of Health of Russia, Moscow, Russia; e-mail: i-titova-54@yandex.ru


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