BACKGROUNDS: The prevalence of toxoplasmosis is higher in schizophrenics than in the general population. It has been suggested that certain symptoms of schizophrenia, including changes in olfactory functions, are in fact symptoms of toxoplasmosis that can be easily detected in schizophrenics only due to the increased prevalence of toxoplasmosis in this population. Schizophrenics have impaired identification of odors and lower sensitivity of odor detection, however, no information about these parameters of non-schizophrenic Toxoplasma-infected subjects is available. METHODS: Here we searched for differences in olfactory functions between 62 infected and 61 noninfected non-schizophrenic subjects using the case-controls experimental design. RESULTS: The infected men scored better than the non-infected controls in the standard odor-identification test. The infected women rated all smells as more intensive while the infected men rated nearly all smells as less intensive. Infected women rated the pleasantness of the smell of the cat urine as higher than the non-infected women and the opposite was true for the men-in contrast, higher pleasantness of odor in infected men and lower in infected women were observed and described in the 2011 study. Toxoplasmosis, Rh, and toxoplasmosis-Rh interaction were not associated with the rated pleasantness of the smell of other stimuli. However, our sample contained only 17 Rh negative men and 30 Rh negative women. Therefore, all results concerning the main effects of Rh factor and the interaction with Rh factor must be considered only preliminary. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that latent toxoplasmosis is associated with changes in the olfactory functions in humans; however, the observed changes differ from those observed in schizophrenics.

• MeSH
• dospělí MeSH
• kočky MeSH
• krevní skupiny - systém Rh-Hr metabolismus   MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladý dospělý MeSH
• moč MeSH
• odoranty MeSH
• schizofrenie metabolismus   parazitologie   patofyziologie   MeSH
• studie případů a kontrol MeSH
• Toxoplasma patogenita   MeSH
• toxoplazmóza metabolismus   patofyziologie   MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Check Tag
• dospělí MeSH
• kočky MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladý dospělý MeSH
• mužské pohlaví MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH

BACKGROUND: Latent toxoplasmosis, the life-long presence of dormant stages of Toxoplasma in immunoprivileged organs and of anamnestic IgG antibodies in blood, affects about 30% of humans. Infected subjects have an increased incidence of various disorders, including schizophrenia. Several studies, as well as the character of toxoplasmosis-associated disturbance of neurotransmitters, suggest that toxoplasmosis could also play an etiological role in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). METHODS: The aim of the present cross-sectional study performed on a population of 7471 volunteers was to confirm the association between toxoplasmosis and OCD, and toxoplasmosis and psychological symptoms of OCD estimated by the standard Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Revised (OCI-R). RESULTS: Incidence of OCD was 2.18% (n=39) in men and 2.28% (n=83) in women. Subjects with toxoplasmosis had about a 2.5 times higher odds of OCD and about a 2.7 times higher odds of learning disabilities. The incidence of 18 other neuropsychiatric disorders did not differ between Toxoplasma-infected and Toxoplasma-free subjects. The infected subjects, even the OCD-free subjects, scored higher on the OCI-R. LIMITATIONS: Examined subjects provided the information about their toxoplasmosis and OCD statuses themselves, which could result in underrating the strength of observed associations. CONCLUSIONS: The results confirmed earlier reports of the association between toxoplasmosis and OCD. They also support recent claims that latent toxoplasmosis is in fact a serious disease with many impacts on quality of life of patients.

• MeSH
• dospělí MeSH
• kočky MeSH
• kvalita života MeSH
• lidé středního věku MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• neparametrická statistika MeSH
• obsedantně kompulzivní porucha diagnóza   parazitologie   psychologie   MeSH
• průřezové studie MeSH
• schizofrenie diagnóza   parazitologie   MeSH
• Toxoplasma MeSH
• toxoplazmóza komplikace   přenos   MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Check Tag
• dospělí MeSH
• kočky MeSH
• lidé středního věku MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mužské pohlaví MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH

BACKGROUND: About 30% of people on Earth have latent toxoplasmosis. Infected subjects do not express any clinical symptoms, however, they carry dormant stages of parasite Toxoplasma for the rest of their life. This form of toxoplasmosis is mostly considered harmless, however, recent studies showed its specific effects on physiology, behaviour and its associations with various diseases, including psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia. Individuals who suffer from schizophrenia have about 2.7 times higher prevalence of Toxoplasma-seropositivity than controls, which suggests that some traits characteristic of schizophrenic patients, including the sex difference in schizophrenia onset, decrease of grey matter density in specific brain areas and modification of prepulse inhibition of startle reaction could in fact be caused by toxoplasmosis for those patients who are Toxoplasma-seropositive. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We measured the effect of prepulse inhibition/facilitation of the startle reaction on reaction times. The students, 170 women and 66 men, were asked to react as quickly as possible to a startling acoustic signal by pressing a computer mouse button. Some of the startling signals were without the prepulse, some were 20 msec. preceded by a short (20 msec.) prepulse signal of lower intensity. Toxoplasma-seropositive subjects had longer reaction times than the controls. Acoustic prepulse shorted the reaction times in all subjects. This effect of prepulse on reaction times was stronger in male subjects and increased with the duration of infection, suggesting that it represented a cumulative effect of latent toxoplasmosis, rather than a fading out after effect of past acute toxoplasmosis. CONCLUSIONS: Different sensitivity of Toxoplasma-seropositive and Toxoplasma-seronegative subjects on effect of prepulses on reaction times (the toxoplasmosis-prepulse interaction) suggested, but of course did not prove, that the alternations of prepulse inhibition of startle reaction observed in schizophrenia patients probably joined the list of schizophrenia symptoms that are in fact caused by latent toxoplasmosis.

• MeSH
• dospělí MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladý dospělý MeSH
• reakční čas MeSH
• schizofrenie (psychologie) MeSH
• schizofrenie imunologie   parazitologie   patofyziologie   MeSH
• sexuální faktory MeSH
• Toxoplasma fyziologie   MeSH
• toxoplazmóza imunologie   parazitologie   patofyziologie   psychologie   MeSH
• úleková reakce fyziologie   MeSH
• Check Tag
• dospělí MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladý dospělý MeSH
• mužské pohlaví MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH

OBJECTIVE: Toxoplasmosis is a lifelong parasitic disease that appears to be associated to schizophrenia. However, no distinguishing attributes in Toxoplasma-infected schizophrenia patients have been described as yet. METHOD: We searched for differences in symptom profile, cognitive performance and treatment response between 194 Toxoplasma-free and 57 (22.7%) Toxoplasma-infected schizophrenia patients treated in Prague Psychiatric Centre between 2000 and 2010. RESULTS: Infected and non-infected patients differed in severity of symptoms (P = 0.032) measured with the Positive and Negative Symptom Scale (PANSS). Infected patients scored higher in positive subscale of PANSS, but not in the general and negative subscales. Infected men scored higher also in Total PANSS score, and negative, reality distortion, disorganisation and cognitive scores. Higher PANSS scores of positive, negative and disorganised psychopathology were associated with the lower titres of anti-Toxoplasma antibodies suggesting that psychopathology deteriorates with duration of parasitic infection. Infected patients remained about 33 days longer in hospital during their last admission than uninfected ones (P = 0.003). Schizophrenia started approximately 1 year earlier in infected men and about 3 years later in infected women, no such difference was observed in uninfected subjects. CONCLUSION: Latent toxoplasmosis in schizophrenia may lead to more severe positive psychopathology and perhaps less favourable course of schizophrenia.

• MeSH
• délka pobytu statistika a číselné údaje   MeSH
• dospělí MeSH
• kognitivní poruchy epidemiologie   parazitologie   psychologie   MeSH
• lidé středního věku MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladiství MeSH
• mladý dospělý MeSH
• mozková toxoplazmóza epidemiologie   psychologie   MeSH
• psychiatrické posuzovací škály MeSH
• rozložení podle pohlaví MeSH
• schizofrenie (psychologie) * MeSH
• schizofrenie epidemiologie   parazitologie   MeSH
• stupeň závažnosti nemoci MeSH
• Check Tag
• dospělí MeSH
• lidé středního věku MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladiství MeSH
• mladý dospělý MeSH
• mužské pohlaví MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH
• Geografické názvy
• Česká republika MeSH

For a long time, a latent toxoplasmosis, the lifelong presence of dormant stages of Toxoplasma in various tissues, including the brain, was considered harmless for immunocompetent persons. Within the past 10 years, however, many independent studies have shown that this parasitic disease, with a worldwide prevalence of about 30%, could be indirectly responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths due to its effects on the rate of traffic and workplace accidents, and also suicides. Moreover, latent toxoplasmosis is probably one of the most important risk factors for schizophrenia. At least some of these effects, possibly mediated by increased dopamine and decreased tryptophan, are products of manipulation activity by Toxoplasma aiming to increase the probability of transmission from intermediate to definitive host through predation.

• MeSH
• chování MeSH
• dopamin metabolismus   MeSH
• dopravní nehody psychologie   MeSH
• kočky MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mozek metabolismus   parazitologie   patologie   MeSH
• myši MeSH
• pracovní nehody psychologie   MeSH
• rizikové faktory MeSH
• schizofrenie etiologie   parazitologie   MeSH
• sebevražda psychologie   MeSH
• sexuálně přenosné nemoci parazitologie   MeSH
• těhotenství MeSH
• testosteron metabolismus   MeSH
• Toxoplasma fyziologie   MeSH
• toxoplazmóza komplikace   metabolismus   psychologie   přenos   MeSH
• tryptofan metabolismus   MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Check Tag
• kočky MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mužské pohlaví MeSH
• myši MeSH
• těhotenství MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH

The parasitic protozoan Toxoplasma gondii infects about one-third of the population of developed countries. The life-long presence of dormant stages of this parasite in the brain and muscular tissues of infected humans is usually considered asymptomatic from the clinical point of view. In the past 20 years, research performed mostly on military personnel, university students, pregnant women and blood donors has shown that this 'asymptomatic' disease has a large influence on various aspects of human life. Toxoplasma-infected subjects differ from uninfected controls in the personality profile estimated with two versions of Cattell's 16PF, Cloninger's TCI and Big Five questionnaires. Most of these differences increase with the length of time since the onset of infection, suggesting that Toxoplasma influences human personality rather than human personality influencing the probability of infection. Toxoplasmosis increases the reaction time of infected subjects, which can explain the increased probability of traffic accidents in infected subjects reported in three retrospective and one very large prospective case-control study. Latent toxoplasmosis is associated with immunosuppression, which might explain the increased probability of giving birth to a boy in Toxoplasma-infected women and also the extremely high prevalence of toxoplasmosis in mothers of children with Down syndrome. Toxoplasma-infected male students are about 3 cm taller than Toxoplasma-free subjects and their faces are rated by women as more masculine and dominant. These differences may be caused by an increased concentration of testosterone. Toxoplasma also appears to be involved in the initiation of more severe forms of schizophrenia. At least 40 studies confirmed an increased prevalence of toxoplasmosis among schizophrenic patients. Toxoplasma-infected schizophrenic patients differ from Toxoplasma-free schizophrenic patients by brain anatomy and by a higher intensity of the positive symptoms of the disease. Finally, five independent studies performed in blood donors, pregnant women and military personnel showed that RhD blood group positivity, especially in RhD heterozygotes, protects infected subjects against various effects of latent toxoplasmosis, such as the prolongation of reaction times, an increased risk of traffic accidents and excessive pregnancy weight gain. The modern human is not a natural host of Toxoplasma. Therefore, it can only be speculated which of the observed effects of latent toxoplasmosis are the result of the manipulation activity of the Toxoplasma aimed to increase the probability of its transmission from a natural intermediate to the definitive host by predation, and which are just side effects of chronic infection.

• MeSH
• chování MeSH
• fenotyp MeSH
• interakce hostitele a parazita * MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• osobnost * MeSH
• reakční čas MeSH
• schizofrenie etiologie   parazitologie   MeSH
• těhotenství MeSH
• Toxoplasma fyziologie   MeSH
• toxoplazmóza epidemiologie   patologie   patofyziologie   psychologie   MeSH
• velikost těla MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• mužské pohlaví MeSH
• těhotenství MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH

Osoby s pozitivním Rh faktorem jsou více chráněny vůči patogenním vlivům zevního prostředí včetně poruch navozených latentní infekcí Toxoplasma gondii, stárnutím a patrně i únavou. Studie se zaměřila na podíl Rh faktoru na modifikaci klinického obrazu schizofrenie. V populaci 186 schizofrenních pacientů, účastníků denního stacionáře, jsme zjištiovali, zda RhD fenotyp ovlivňuje klinický obraz onemocnění u pacientu se schizofrenií vyšetřených na sérologickou přítomnost toxoplazmové infekce. Zjistili jsme, že RhD fenotyp vykazoval signifikantní vliv na obraz onemocnění u schizofrenních pacientů, zejména u žen. RhD-negativní ženy vykazovaly více pozitivních příznaků schizofrenie a větší míru zkreslení reality v PANSS škále než RhD-pozitivní ženy. U mužů ovlivňoval RhD fenotyp průběh onemocnění podstatně méně a obvykle opač¬ ným způsobem než u žen. Délka hospitalizace v počtu dní byla signifikantně delší u RhD-negativních žen oproti RhD-pozitivním ženám a byly jim ordinovány i vyšší dávky antipsychotik. Efekt RhD fenotypu na průběh schizofrenie nesouvisel s obdobným, již dříve popsaným efektem toxoplasmózy, tj. uplatňoval se jak u infikovaných, tak neinfikovaných pacientů. RhD-pozitivní fenotyp můžeme považovat za nadějný protektivní faktor zmírňující klinické projevy schizofrenie.

Rh-positive factor subjects are better protected against pathogenic environmental factors including impairment associated with latent infec- tion of Toxoplasma gondii , aging and possibly also tiredness. Our study was focused on contribution of Rh factor to schizophrenia clinical picture modification. In the population of 186 schizophrenia patients who attended day-treatment structured programme we investigated w hether RhD phenotype has any clinical impact on clinical manifestation of schizophrenia patients who were tested for seropositivity to Toxoplasma infection. We found out that RhD phenotype was linked with significant impact on clinical presentation in schizophrenia patients es pecially in women. RhD-negative women showed more severe positive symptoms of schizophrenia and more pronounced reality distorsion dimension in PANSS scale in comparison to RhD-positive women. The course of the illness was substantially less influenced by RhD phenotype in men. Length of hospi- tal stay measured by number of days was significantly incr eased in RhD-negative women and they we re prescribed also high er dose s of anti-psychotics. The effect of RhD phenotype was independent on similar, already described, effect of toxoplasma infection, as it was o bserved both in Toxoplasma -infected and Toxoplasma -free patients. RhD-positive phenotype can be considered as a promising protective factor moderating cli- nical picture of schizophrenia.

• Klíčová slova
• protektivní faktory, latentní toxoplazmóza,
• MeSH
• antipsychotika terapeutické užití   MeSH
• délka pobytu MeSH
• dospělí MeSH
• fenotyp MeSH
• financování organizované MeSH
• kohortové studie MeSH
• krevní skupiny - systém Rh-Hr genetika   imunologie   krev   MeSH
• latence viru MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• pacienti hospitalizovaní statistika a číselné údaje   MeSH
• psychiatrické posuzovací škály MeSH
• schizofrenie krev   parazitologie   MeSH
• sexuální faktory MeSH
• statistika jako téma MeSH
• toxoplazmóza diagnóza   imunologie   parazitologie   MeSH
• věk při počátku nemoci MeSH
• vztah mezi dávkou a účinkem léčiva MeSH
• Check Tag
• dospělí MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mužské pohlaví MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH

Do projektu „Psychosociální a biologické prediktory efektu léčebných intervencí u chronických afektivních a psychotických poruch" se zapoj iU zdraví dobrovolníci s negativní psychiatrickou anamnézou. Metodika: Celkem 115 osob (65 žen, 56,5 %) absolvovalo vyšetření počítačovým testem Conners' Continuous Performance Test II Version 5 for Windows (CPT II V.5) a vyplnilo dotazníky deprese, demografické a zdravotní údaje. Všichni účastnici byli sérologicky testováni a spolehlivě rozděleni na Toxoplasma séronegativní a séropozitivní podskupiny. Výsledky: Toxoplasma pozitivní podskupina zdravých dobrovolníků vykazovala statisticky významnou tendenci zlepšovat svůj výkon v průběhu testu vyjádřenou pomocí parametru Hit Reaction Time Block v Conner's CPT II. Závěr: Zjistili jsme pozvolné zlepšování pozornosti/vigilance u zdravých dobrovolníků infikovaných toxoplazmou za použití specifické metody. Celkové urychlení reakčních časů v průběhu testu se může vztahovat ke zhoršené pozornosti nositelů toxoplazmových cyst na počátku testu a jejich zachovalé schopnosti vyrovnat počáteční útlum pozornosti. Výsledky jsou prvním krokem při zkoumání dlouhodobého neurotropního efektu latentní toxopíazmové parazitózy na psychotickou a nepsychotickou populaci.

Healthy controls without any mental disorder participated in the project ‘Psychosocial and biological predictors of therapeutic outcome of chronic affective and psychotic disorders'. Methods: A total of 115 persons (65 women, 56.5%) completed the computerized test Conners‘ Continuous Performance Test II Ver- sion 5 for Windows (CPT II V.5), and were interviewed for depression, demographic and health status. All participants were sero logically tested and reliably divided into Toxoplasma negative or positive subgroups. Results: Toxoplasma positive subgroup of healthy subjects showed statistically significant tendency to improve their performance in the course of the test expressed by Hit Reaction Time Block Change parameter in Conner's CPT II. Conclusion: We found out gradual improvement of attention/vigilance in healthy toxoplasma-infected subjects using specific method. The overall acceleration of reaction times may be related to attention deterioration of Toxoplasma cyst carriers at the beginning of the test and their preserved capacity to balance early vigilance decrement. This result represents a first step to examine long-term neu rotropic effect of latent TG parasitosis on psychotic and non-psychotic population.

• MeSH
• bdění MeSH
• epidemiologické studie MeSH
• financování organizované MeSH
• infekční nemoci komplikace   parazitologie   psychologie   MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• pozornost MeSH
• schizofrenie etiologie   parazitologie   MeSH
• sérologie metody   MeSH
• statistika jako téma metody   MeSH
• Toxoplasma imunologie   parazitologie   MeSH
• toxoplazmóza krev   parazitologie   psychologie   MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH

Although latent infection with Toxoplasma gondii is among the most prevalent of human infections, it has been generally assumed that, except for congenital transmission, it is asymptomatic. The demonstration that latent Toxoplasma infections can alter behavior in rodents has led to a reconsideration of this assumption. When infected human adults were compared with uninfected adults on personality questionnaires or on a panel of behavioral tests, several differences were found. Other studies have demonstrated reduced psychomotor performance in affected individuals. Possible mechanisms by which T. gondii may affect human behavior include its effect on dopamine and on testosterone.

• MeSH
• Catellův osobnostní dotazník 16PF MeSH
• chronická nemoc MeSH
• dospělí MeSH
• financování organizované MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mozková toxoplazmóza diagnóza   imunologie   parazitologie   psychologie   MeSH
• protilátky protozoální krev   MeSH
• psychomotorický výkon fyziologie   MeSH
• reakční čas MeSH
• schizofrenie (psychologie) MeSH
• schizofrenie diagnóza   imunologie   parazitologie   MeSH
• těhotenství MeSH
• Toxoplasma imunologie   MeSH
• věkové faktory MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Check Tag
• dospělí MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mužské pohlaví MeSH
• těhotenství MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Geografické názvy
• Česká republika MeSH

Negativní příznaky jsou považovány za nejvíce perzistující a zneschopňující komponentu schizofrenie. Jejich možnost ovlivnění antipsychotiky zůstává sporná. Repetitivní transkraniální magnetická stimulace (rTMS) představuje novou možnost ovlivnění negativních příznaků schizofrenie. Teoretické zdůvodnění účinnosti rTMS u negativních příznaků schizofrenie lze spatřovat ve skutečnosti, že vysokofrekvenční rTMS má aktivační vliv na neurony mozkové kůry. Negativní korelace mezi aktivitou frontálního kortexu a závažností negativních příznaků byla opakovaně prokázána. Dalším neméně významným faktem je ovlivnění uvolňování dopaminu mezolimbického a mezostriatálního mozkového systému vysokofrekvenční stimulací frontálního kortexu. Konzistentní literární údaje mapující danou tématiku v klinické praxi prakticky neexistují.

Negative symptoms are regarded as the most persistent and disabling component of schizophrenia. The possibility of influencing them by means of antipsychotics remains problematic. Repetitive transcranial magnetic simulation (rTMS) presents a new opportunity for influencing negative schizophrenic symptoms. A theoretical justification of the effect of rTMS on negative schizophrenic symptoms can be seen in the fact that high-frequency rTMS has an activating impact on cortex neurons. The negative correlation between activity of the frontal cortex and severity of negative symptoms has been proved repeatedly. Another important fact is that dopamine can be released in the mesolimbic and mesostriatal brain systems by high-frequency stimulation of the frontal cortex. There are hardly any consistent published data mapping the subject in clinical practice.

• MeSH
• depresivní poruchy terapie   MeSH
• dopamin metabolismus   MeSH
• elektromagnetické jevy metody   statistika a číselné údaje   trendy   MeSH
• finanční podpora výzkumu jako téma MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• prefrontální mozková kůra fyziologie   patofyziologie   MeSH
• příznaky a symptomy MeSH
• schizofrenie komplikace   parazitologie   terapie   MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• Publikační typ
• srovnávací studie MeSH