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Specificity of the Toxoplasma gondii-altered behaviour to definitive versus non-definitive host predation risk

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 July 2008

P. H. L. LAMBERTON ,
C. A. DONNELLY  and
J. P. WEBSTER
P. H. L. LAMBERTON
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3SY, UK
C. A. DONNELLY
Affiliation:
MRC Centre for Outbreak Analysis and Modelling, Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College, Norfolk Place, London, W2 1PG, UK
J. P. WEBSTER*
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3SY, UK
*
*Corresponding author and address for request for materials: Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College, Norfolk Place, London W2 1PG, UK. E-mail: joanne.webster@imperial.ac.uk
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Summary

The hypothesis that the parasite Toxoplasma gondii manipulates the behaviour of its intermediate rat host in order to increase its chance of being predated specifically by its feline definitive host, rather than a non-definitive host predator species, was tested. The impact of a range of therapeutic drugs, previously demonstrated to be effective in preventing the development of T. gondii-associated behavioural and cognitive alterations in rats, on definitive-host predator specificity was also tested. Using a Y-shaped maze design, we demonstrated that T. gondii-associated behavioural changes, apparently aimed to increase predation rate, do appear to be specific to that of the feline definitive host – there were significant and consistent differences between the (untreated) infected and uninfected rats groups where T. gondii-infected rats tended to choose the definitive host feline-predator-associated maze arm and nest-box significantly more often than a maze arm or nest-box treated with non-definitive host predator (mink) odour. Drug treatment of infected rats prevented any such host-specificity from being displayed. We discuss our results in terms of their potential implications both for T. gondii epidemiology and the evolution of parasite-altered behaviour.

Keywords

Toxoplasma gondiiparasite-altered behaviourpredationspecificitymedication
Type
Original Articles
Information
Parasitology , Volume 135 , Issue 10 , September 2008 , pp. 1143 - 1150
Copyright
Copyright © 2008 Cambridge University Press

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