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Toxoplasma Gondii in Schizophrenia

Publication at Central Library of Charles University, Faculty of Medicine in Hradec Králové |
2006

Abstract

The hypothesis of the link between Toxoplasma infection and schizophrenia is supported by these findings:

1)statistically significant increase of antibodies to Toxoplasma in antipsychotic-naive, first-episode patients,

2) the PANSS total score related to the levels of IgG antibodies to TG and the levels of IgM antibodies depending on PANSS negative symptoms in First-Episode Schizophrenia,

3) prenatal exposure to toxoplasmosis and intrauterine infections with Toxoplasma as a risk factor for schizophrenia,

4) increased levels of cognitive imapairment in persons with schizophrenia who have serologic evidence of Toxoplasma infection in comparison to Toxoplasma seronegative patients,

5) cognitive and behavioural changes in infected non-schizophrenic subjects Neurocognitive assesment, functional brain imaging methods nad molecular genetic techniques improve our possibilities to test the involvement of Toxoplasma in the etiology of schizophrenia.