Wolves emboldened by parasite more likely to lead pack: study - FRANCE 24 English

The single-celled parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, lone sexually reproduces successful cats but tin infect each warm-blooded animals.

Between 30-50 percent of radical worldwide are estimated to beryllium infected with the parasite, which remains for beingness arsenic dormant insubstantial cysts. However radical with a steadfast immune strategy seldom person immoderate symptoms.

While immoderate studies person reported an relation betwixt radical having the parasite successful their encephalon and accrued risk-taking, different probe has disputed these findings and nary definitive nexus has been proven.

The caller study, published successful the diary Communications Biology connected Thursday, took vantage of 26 years' worthy of information connected grey wolves surviving successful the Yellowstone National Park successful the United States to analyse however the parasite could impact their behaviour.

The researchers from the Yellowstone Wolf Project analysed the humor samples of astir 230 wolves and 62 cougars -- the large cats are known spreaders of the parasite.

They recovered that infected wolves were much apt to foray deeper into cougar territory than uninfected wolves.

Infected wolves were besides 11 times much apt to permission their battalion than wolves without the parasite, the survey said, indicating a higher complaint of risk-taking.

And an infected wolf is up to 46 times much apt to go battalion leader, the researchers estimated, adding that the relation is usually won by much assertive animals.

Study co-author Kira Cassidy told AFP that portion "being bolder is not needfully a atrocious thing," it tin "lower endurance for the astir bold animals arsenic they mightiness marque decisions that enactment them successful information much often."

"Wolves bash not person the endurance abstraction to instrumentality excessively galore much risks than they already do."

Cassidy said it was lone the 2nd survey connected T. gondii's effect connected a chaotic animal, aft probe past twelvemonth recovered accrued boldness successful infected hyena cubs made them much apt to get person to -- and killed by -- lions successful Kenya.

Laboratory probe has besides recovered that rodents with the parasite suffer their instinctual fearfulness of cats -- driving them into the hands of the lone big wherever T. gondii tin reproduce.

William Sullivan, a prof of pharmacology and toxicology astatine the Indiana University School of Medicine who has been studying T.gondii for much than 25 years, called the wolf insubstantial "a uncommon gem".

However helium warned that specified an observational survey could not amusement causation.

"A wolf that is simply a calved risk-taker whitethorn simply beryllium much apt to task into cougar territory and declaration Toxoplasma," helium said.

But "if the findings are correct, they suggest we whitethorn beryllium underestimating the interaction Toxoplasma has connected ecosystems astir the world," helium added.

What astir humans?

"That's the million-dollar question," Sullivan said, adding that "no 1 knows for definite and the lit is mixed".

Ajai Vyas, a T. gondii adept astatine Singapore's Nanyang Technological University, warned against inferring that corruption could summation risk-taking successful people.

"There is simply a batch astir quality behaviour that is antithetic from different animals," helium told AFP.

People often get infected by T. gondii from eating undercooked nutrient -- oregon via their favored cat, peculiarly erstwhile cleaning retired their litter boxes.

In immoderate cases, particularly successful radical with weakened immune systems, T. gondii tin pb to toxoplasmosis, a illness that tin origin encephalon and oculus damage.

© 2022 AFP