Toxoplasmosis: The Zombie Maker

We have all seen the traditional brainless zombies on the movie screen, but what if that could actually happen? There is a parasite that causes many of these symptoms that we have seen in zombie movies, but only in rare cases, so far. We know that parasites and diseases all have the ability to mutate and become more powerful, the common cold and the flu does it all the time. This little parasite can be found in food, pets, rodents, even your next door neighbor. Toxoplasmosis is caused by a parasite that comfortably dwells deep inside of you friendly feline and finds its way into your gullet and that's when you start to feel a change.

Toxoplasma Gondii

So, what is the cause of Toxoplasmosis? According to the CDC (The Center of Disease Control and Prevention) Toxoplasmosis is caused by a tiny protozoan called Toxoplasma gondii. Despite the anti-violent name, the protozoan silently creeps into the system of rats and alters there brain activity so that the rats no longer fear their common enemy, cats. Parasites In Humans (a website filled with this sort of information) says:

Studies show the capability for the parasite to make rats fearless near cats. This indicates the evolutionary need for Toxoplasma gondii to get inside felines. When a rat is eaten by a cat the parasite gets inside the primary host. There have been a few studies with humans, too. Some results indicate a strong correlation between schizophrenia and toxoplasmosis. According to some studies women with toxoplasmosis are more likely to cheat their husbands. Men with the parasite have shown to be more aggressive. Infected humans also have slower reaction times.

Schizophrenia is a pretty intense symptom to list with this parasite. With the knowledge of the reaction of the rats from the parasite, one can assume that the behavior caused by it in humans is also adapted for evolutionary survival. Affairs or having multiple sexual partners passes many diseases. STDs pass this way and if a woman with the parasite behaves this way, she may have been taken over by the parasite in order to pass it on to other males. As for males, extreme acts of aggression cause the shed of blood and the parasite is easily transmitted through blood to blood contact.

The Cycle of Infection

How do you know if you or anyone might have Toxoplasmosis? Symptoms are a key way to identify the infection of this little protozoon. Toxoplasmosis is mainly an asymptomatic infection, says the CDC, this means that the average human being has a strong enough immune system to prevent the infection from doing any extreme damage to the infected body and shows no symptoms. A simple list of symptoms can be found on the Toxoplasma gondii page of Parasites In Humans and this list says that symptoms include the following: confusion, fever, headache, nausea, poor coordination, and seizures. After reading the list, one may picture a figure that looks lost, stumbling across the road and moaning, which looks like a zombie in the minds of many, all it needs is the brain craving.

So, how exactly do we get a zombie from Toxoplasmosis? Parasites and diseases, as mentioned previously, have the ability to mutate in order to survive. Although Toxoplasmosis is not air borne, it, like many familiar infections, such as the swine flu, which started out as a similar infection to Toxoplasmosis that was not air borne, it mutated and became air borne. The infection caused by Toxoplasma gondii can also mutate into an air borne virus, which may cause other symptoms to develop.

In conclusion, Toxoplasmosis can cause a zombie-like infection if it happens to mutate into a more powerful air borne infection. It is already easily transmitted, I myself know a few people with the infection, luckily it is treatable, but colds adapt around treatments as well. Toxoplasmosis is a hidden enemy just waiting to burst out and come stumbling after us in an attempt to survive evolution and produce more infected beings. It’s already found in rats, cats, pigs, cows, and people as well as other warm blooded mammals. So if you see that friendly girl next door eyeing you over the fence, think again, she may have Toxoplasmosis: the new strain, and be waiting for her next victim.

Isn't she perfect!

Works Cited

Center of Disease Controland Prevention. "CDC - Toxoplasmosis." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2 Nov. 2010. Web. 17 Oct. 2011. <CDC's Toxoplasmosis/>.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "CDC - Toxoplasmosis - Epidemiology & Risk Factors." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2 Nov. 2010. Web. 17 Oct. 2011. <CDC "Toxoplasma Gondii">.

Parasites In Humans. "Toxoplasma Gondii." Parasites In Humans. 2010-2011. Web. 17 Oct. 2011. <Parasites in Humans "Toxoplasma Gondii">.

All photos except for "Brains" were taken from Google Images, Brains was created using Cool Text Generator