It’s been linked to risk taking and entrepreneurial behaviour in humans.
Comment on Anon gets /fit/
MrJameGumb@lemmy.world 5 months ago
I had to look up toxoplasmosis since it doesn’t actually sound like anything good. In typical 4Chan style he’s confidently used it completely incorrectly
From the CDC website: “Toxoplasmosis is considered to be a leading cause of death attributed to foodborne illness in the United States. More than 40 million men, women, and children in the U.S. carry the Toxoplasma parasite, but very few have symptoms because the immune system usually keeps the parasite from causing illness. However, women newly infected with Toxoplasma during or shortly before pregnancy and anyone with a compromised immune system should be aware that toxoplasmosis can have severe consequences.
Toxoplasmosis is considered one of the neglected parasitic infections of the United States, a group of five parasitic diseases that have been targeted by CDC for public health action.”
After further reading it also appears the only way you would get it from a cat would be by directly handling their feces…
Delonix@lemmy.world 5 months ago
shreddy_scientist@lemmy.ml 5 months ago
Toxoplasmosis is very intriguing, it has actually evolved alongside cats and humans for ages. While anyone with an immunodeficiency is at higher risk of severe side effects, like with any pathogen, it’s also associated with taking bigger risk. This is why a ton of motorcyclists and casino regulars test positive for the parasite. But when we were hunter gatherers, the infection was associated with bringing home bigger kills, which helped the entire tribe. Due to this, toxoplasmosis infections had sizable benefits and those with the infection often had positions of power in tribes!
ryannathans@aussie.zone 5 months ago
That’s mad, got a source?
shreddy_scientist@lemmy.ml 5 months ago
Of course!
- This ones about the evolutionary benefits:
The origin of risk aversion www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4273387/
- Here’s one on fatal motorcycle accidents:
Increased risk of traffic accidents in subjects with latent toxoplasmosis - a retrospective case-control study www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC117239/
- For good measure, here’s one on business owners and the parasite:
Risky business - linking Toxoplasma gondii infection and entrepreneurship behaviours across individuals and countries www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6083268/
ryannathans@aussie.zone 5 months ago
Fascinating, wonder how hard it is to cure
BeMoreCareful@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Seems more likely to get it from undercooked pork that touching cat poos
The most common threat to citizens in the United States is from eating raw or undercooked pork.
MrJameGumb@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Yes that is the most common way to get it, but the only way Anon would get it specifically from a cat as he stated in the post would be from the cats feces
zweieuro@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Anon feels more manly when he is handling his cats feces?
Icalasari@fedia.io 3 months ago
Old thread but I feel I do need to clarify this
They can be in shit particles that are stirred up by the dust from litterboxes. So just breathing when changing litter can lead to infection if you're unlucky
Lemminary@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Ohh, parasitology is fascinating! I highly recommend it for anyone who likes biology.
My absolute favorite are the tape worms like Taenia solium (pork tapeworm). It’s the type of worm that “ate” a portion of RFK’s brain. It wasn’t really a whole worm but it was probably an egg that he ate in undercooked meat that traveled up his body and calcified in his brain. As Rebecca Watson points out, it’s the leading cause of epilepsy worldwide.
Fun nerd facts: They have a spiky head that clings to the intestine and they absorb nutrients through their tegument (their skin). These fuckers are hermaphroditic with hundreds and hundreds of ovaries and testes within the same worm and the bodies are made of individual worm eggs that share a nervous system. That’s why they come apart so easily, because each segment is its own individual worm that can self-inseminate!
kina@lemmy.dbzer0.com 5 months ago
Damn that’s terrifying. Good reason to quit pork imo. I like chicken better anyway.
Lemminary@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Just make sure to wash your hands, disinfect vegetables and cook meat thoroughly. Lots of parasites can be transmitted this way, it’s not just pork!
Missmuffet@lemmy.world 5 months ago
What a wonderful and random thing to have a favorite of :) keep up the good work my guy
Lumisal@lemmy.world 5 months ago
What did they call tape worms before tape was invented?
FozzyOsbourne@lemm.ee 5 months ago
Laserdisc worms
Lemminary@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Dad, what are you doing here??
Lumisal@lemmy.world 5 months ago
Interesting name. I see why they shortened it to Tape Worm
ryannathans@aussie.zone 5 months ago
Wtf that’s metal, reminds me of those single celled organisms in the ocean coming together to function as one animal