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ABC News
9 minutes ago
- ABC News
Toxoplasmosis test could lead to learning how parasite affects behaviour
An international research team has developed an online test that they say is capable of detecting toxoplasmosis infection, commonly spread to humans by cats. While the test is not designed to replace a medical diagnosis, the researchers hope it will open the door for more large-scale studies into the effects of toxoplasmosis on the population. An estimated 30 to 50 per cent of the world's population is infected with Toxoplasma gondii, a single-celled parasite capable of infecting humans and any warm-blooded animal or bird. In Australia, the main host of the parasite is cats, which typically become infected by eating small mammals such as rodents or birds. The disease associated with the parasite, toxoplasmosis, can cause a range of health problems, from minor flu-like symptoms to, in rare cases, inflammation of the brain, seizures, and blindness. Toxoplasmosis can alter behaviour in animals, and some research suggests it may also affect how humans think. A new international study published in Acta Psychologica may provide a new way to study these effects. According to neuroeconomist Michele Garagnani, from The University of Melbourne and study co-author, toxoplasmosis affects our neurochemistry by influencing neurotransmitters such as dopamine, serotonin, and adrenaline, which regulate behaviour. Unlike many parasitic infections, being infected with T. gondi has been linked to a range of mental health conditions and behavioural changes, including bipolar disorder, delayed reaction times, and schizophrenia. The infection has been found to make mice impatient and willing to take risks. In some cases, mice actively seek out cats, which makes them more likely to be eaten. While it is still unknown how the parasite causes these changes, it raises important questions about the broader impacts of toxoplasmosis on human health and behaviour. "When we estimate that toxoplasmosis affects 2.4 billion people worldwide, that's a very large portion of the global economy who are having their decisions at least partially influenced by a parasite," Dr Garagnani said. Much about how toxoplasmosis affects human behaviour remains unknown. One major obstacle is that medical testing for the parasite is expensive and invasive, requiring blood or saliva samples. "Our research was trying to develop a method that is very cheap and easy to test on a large number of people," Dr Garagnani said. In the study, researchers ran a laboratory experiment with 79 participants with RhD-negative blood lacking the RhD protein on the surface of red blood cells, asking them to complete a reaction-time task. People with the RhD-negative blood type, about 20 per cent of Australians, have slower response times when infected by the parasite. While it is unclear why RhD-negative individuals have slower reaction times when infected, some theorise that the RhD antigen has protective capabilities against the parasite, and in its absence, patients experience elevated symptoms. Despite the small sample size, the team found that their method matched medical testing with 97 per cent accuracy. The delay in reaction time is small, between 0.16 and 0.25 seconds, but Dr Garagnani said even marginal effects could have large-scale consequences. "On a societal scale, having toxoplasmosis infection with that particular blood type leads to an increase in traffic accidents, for example," he said. The team then replicated the experiment using an online survey with more than 1,000 participants in the UK who had RhD-negative blood. Based on the results, the research team deemed 18 per cent of the respondents to be infected with toxoplasmosis. The team then asked participants a series of questions about their risk preferences, employment status, income, and completed other cognitive tests. "Those who were deemed infected were more likely to smoke, drink alcohol, and experience mental health problems such as anxiety, stress and depression compared to the non-infected participants," Dr Garagnani said. While the new online test does not replace a medical diagnosis, Dr Garagnani hoped it would allow researchers to measure the impact of toxoplasmosis on humans. "Our new method is an opportunity for the world as a whole to understand how many of us are infected, how it affects our behaviour, and what steps we can take to manage its impact," he said. Veterinary parasitologist Tharaka Liyanage said the study posed an innovative approach to exploring the potential behavioural consequences of an infection. "I find it fascinating that a microscopic cat parasite could influence not only human health, but also cognition, behaviour, and even economic decision-making," he said. "This tool may be particularly useful in low-resource settings or as a preliminary step in large-scale epidemiological studies." But, Dr Liyanage cautioned that a lot of work needed to be done before the tool made its way into a clinical setting. "I believe further validation, particularly in consultation with medical and clinical experts, would be necessary before this method can be considered for broader application." The test also requires people to have RhD-negative blood, which only 15 to 20 per cent of people have. Rima McLeod, an internationally recognised toxoplasmosis expert from the University of Chicago, echoed this sentiment and called for further research. "Proper, accurate serologic controls documenting toxoplasma infection or its absence for each participant would be needed to implicate toxoplasma in the associations they propose," Professor McLeod said. Dr Garagnani hoped to conduct further tests on the diagnostic tool. "We are hoping that with future study we verify further that the method works, and whether it could be used as a public policy type of intervention where we could firstly test for toxoplasmosis using our method and then try to understand how to effectively target the population where the prevalence is more diffuse."
ABC News
9 minutes ago
- ABC News
Man charged with supplying nitazene-laced vape liquid in Australian first
A Sydney man is the first person in Australia to be charged with supplying potentially lethal nitazene-laced vape liquid that police call a "disturbing evolution" in the illicit drug trade. Following an investigation, NSW Police allegedly uncovered evidence that the 20-year-old man had been running a sophisticated illicit drug distribution model to facilitate the supply of the nitazene in vape liquid vials between March and July this year. On Friday, detectives raided a property in Revesby in Sydney's south where they allegedly located electronics, vape hardware, vials and more than $7,000 in cash. Police said they also seized two imitation firearms, an electrical weapon and a safe, which they were unable to open at the property. Officers later cracked into the safe where they allegedly found a further 1.8 kilograms of nitazene, bringing the total amount of the drugs seized to 2.1kg. A man was arrested at the property and charged with supplying prohibited drug in a commercial quantity and knowingly dealing with proceeds of crime. Police allege the man was involved in the sale, preparation, and distribution of the vials, which were marketed as "supercharged". In a statement, Drug and Firearms Squad commander Detective Superintendent John Watson said nitazenes were highly addictive and could be lethal. "By lacing vape liquid with these synthetic opioids, suppliers are deliberately creating dependency, hooking users to ensure repeat business," Superintendent Watson said. Superintendent Watson said this Australian first demonstrated a "disturbing evolution of the illicit drug trade". According to NSW Health, nitazenes are extremely potent synthetic opioids which are more likely to decrease or stop breathing than other opioids. Authorities said the drugs could be hundreds of times more potent than heroin and could cause severe overdose or death. Addiction specialist Hester Wilson warned about the dangers of synthetic opioids. "Opioid overdose symptoms can include pinpoint pupils, drowsiness, loss of consciousness, slow breathing/snoring or skin turning blue or grey," Dr Wilson said. "It is strongly recommended that anyone who uses any recreational drugs carry naloxone … a lifesaving measure which can temporarily reverse an opioid overdose, including from nitazenes."
News.com.au
3 hours ago
- News.com.au
Valentina is the first Australian ever with extremely rare genetic condition
Valentina's face lights up when customers enter her mum and dad's sandwich shop in Sydney's Little Italy. 'We call her the welcoming party. She sits there and smiles at people when they come in. She's done that from day one,' says Valentina's mum Sara. You would never know that every day is a struggle for the 14-month-old who has a condition so rare she is the only Australian in history to receive her diagnosis. Less than 200 people on the planet have ever experienced what she is experiencing — a rare genetic abnormality that was the result of the ever rarer circumstance that both her parents carried the same gene. 'That we would both have it and marry each other and have a child was so unlikely,' Sara says. 'There are 200 of these cases, ever in the world. None in Australia. Usually these people are cousins who have the same gene but that's not the case with us. So it's pretty crazy that this has manifested this way.' Valentina has Hyaline Fibromatosis Sydrome, characterised by severe pain with movement and progressive joint contractures. 'She can't stretch her legs or lift her arms above her head,' Sara tells 'It manifests through gut problems too, where you don't hold in the nutrients from foods, face rashes, things like that.' Getting a diagnosis was a miracle in itself, one that started the day after she was born when Sara's instincts told her something was not right. 'It was the second day after coming out of the c-section. I noticed straight away,' she says. 'I am an overthinker, but everyone was like, 'you're trying to find a problem'. But I knew.' Sara says she was 'robbed' of the first four months of Valentina's life trying to get somebody to listen and acknowledge what she knew deep down. 'I went to a check-up with the community nurse after we left hospital and she agreed that she wasn't moving her arms properly. 'We went for a brain scan and it came up as nothing. Her brain is unaffected.' Despite receiving no diagnosis, Sara started taking Valentina to physio from four weeks old. 'I kept going as if something was wrong even though nobody would confirm it. A pediatrician at three months said 'yep, actually her legs are concerning me the most'. Her legs had gone from completely normal to completely contracted. 'We went to the hospital on October 9 last year and they were searching and searching and searching for the gene that was causing the problem. 'It is very very difficult to find because our mutations of this gene have never been reported.' Valentina became a research patient. Her DNA and genetics were sent to researchers in Perth who found the gene and checked it against Sara and her husband Dom. 'They confirmed we both had these mutations. Initially they told us we might never have a diagnosis. They said it could take five weeks or five years but we got it in three months.' That's step one. The next step is a bit unknown. 'For us, we're writing the book for this,' Sara says. 'So we don't know the prognosis. We are absolutely writing the book. 'All I know is that she's getting better. There are situations where the contractions can stabilise so we're hoping that's what happens. We don't know the outcome after that. She is on her feet standing with splints. 'When people ask me, 'is she going to walk?'. I say 'I don't know, your guess is as good as mine'. There are no case studies for us to follow, we take it day by day really.' The family's sandwich shop, Dom Panino, sits on the corner of Marion and Edith streets in Leichardt, the iconic inner west suburb of Sydney best known for its Italian food and culture. It started as a food truck at Breakfast Point before Dom and Sara found the perfect location — a restaurant Dom used to frequent when he was younger with his family. Valentina sits inside the entrance now welcoming customers with a smile. In a heartwarming video posted to the pair's social media pages, customers rallied around the family. 'This panino is for Valentina and Jeans for Genes,' customers recited on a day that raised more than $24,000 for the Children's Medical Research Institute. Jeans for Genes Day, which takes place this Thursday, August 7, is about finding treatments for the one-in-20 Aussie children like Valentina who live with conditions like cancer, cystic fibrosis and other devastating genetic diseases. The cause helps raise money to keep labs open, continue with life-changing science and save lives. Sara says raising funds and speaking up for her little girl are an important way of helping her move through the grief. 'This can't be for nothing,' she says. 'I can't just sit here and not tell the world about it. I want Valentina to know that she's so incredible, and so brave and so strong and she's going to live a normal life. I want to make a difference.'
