SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:
Offspring may inherit legacy of their father's Toxoplasma infection
Studying mice infected with the common parasite Toxoplasma, the team discovered that sperm of infected fathers carried an altered 'epigenetic' signature which impacted the brains of resulting offspring. Molecules in the sperm called 'small RNA' appeared to influence the offspring's brain development and behaviour.
'Intergenerational inheritance' of similar epigenetic changes from men exposed to extreme trauma has been well documented. This latest research, published in Cell Reports, has raised the question of whether Toxoplasma infections – or even possibly other infections – in men before conception could impact the health of subsequent generations.
The research was led by Walter and Eliza Hall Institute researchers Dr Shiraz Tyebji and Associate Professor Chris Tonkin, in collaboration with Professor Anthony Hannan at the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health.
[...] Associate Professor Tonkin said people could carry the dormant Toxoplasma parasite for decades, and that this had been associated with the appearance of symptoms of mental disorders such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
"Toxoplasma infections have been shown to cause long-term epigenetic changes in a range of cells around our body. These are changes that do not alter the genetic sequence of DNA, but influence gene expression – that is, which genes are switched on or off," he said.
[...] "We discovered that Toxoplasma infection alters levels of DNA-like molecules, called small RNA, that are carried by sperm," he said. "These changes in small RNA levels affect gene expression, and so could potentially influence brain development and behaviour of offspring.
"We were stunned to see that even the next generation – the 'grandchildren' of the original infected male – displayed changes in their behaviour," Dr Tyebji said.
Journal Reference:
Shiraz Tyebji, Anthony J. Hannan, Christopher J. Tonkin. Pathogenic Infection in Male Mice Changes Sperm Small RNA Profiles and Transgenerationally Alters Offspring Behavior. Cell Reports, 2020; 31 (4): 107573 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.107573
-- submitted from IRC
(Score: 3, Interesting) by HiThere on Thursday April 30 2020, @11:37PM (4 children)
IIUC, however, it doesn't make you love cats. It just causes the smell of cat urine to not be unpleasant. This would be associated with loving cats, but would not be a direct causal factor.
Javascript is what you use to allow unknown third parties to run software you have no idea about on your computer.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Azuma Hazuki on Friday May 01 2020, @12:35AM (3 children)
I love cats, but their piss smells bloody awful. So, not infected, most likely? I don't know anything that could make cats' wee smell pleasant...
I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...
(Score: 2) by HiThere on Friday May 01 2020, @12:47AM
Well, it evolved to live part of its life cycle in rodents, and another part in cats. So it "wants" the mice that it infects to not avoid cats. Humans aren't really a part of it's plan, they're just "Hey, I'm here, and I don't want to die before I must, so I'll just grow here, even though it probably won't do any good". (Of course, if it can live complete it's cycle in leopards, then this might not be quite true.)
Javascript is what you use to allow unknown third parties to run software you have no idea about on your computer.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday May 01 2020, @06:48PM
Pick up a marijuana habit. Good weed sometimes has a cat-piss smell, and you will acquire a taste for it over time.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday May 01 2020, @07:10PM
well you weren't supposed to roll around in it!