ArticlePloS one2018
Toxoplasma gondii infection triggers chronic cachexia and sustained commensal dysbiosis in mice.
Article in PloS one, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 42 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
42 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 58 citations in OpenAlex.
- Understanding the gut microbiota and sarcopenia: a systematic review.Journal of cachexia, sarcopenia and muscle · 2021Pooled it
- Article
- Chronic Toxoplasma gondii infection and its influence on semen analysis in rats: controlled experimental animal study.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Endogenous Amphiregulin promotes muscle repair and function through expansion of fibro-adipogenic progenitors during chronicFrontiers in microbiology · 2026Article
- Spatially divergent metabolic impact of experimental toxoplasmosis: immunological and microbial correlates.mSystems · 2025Article
- From fat storage to immune hubs: the emerging role of adipocytes in coordinating the immune response to infection.The FEBS journal · 2025Review
- Article
- Toxoplasma gondii chronic infection decreases visceral nociception through peripheral opioid receptor signaling.PLoS pathogens · 2025Article
- Influence of MyD88 and αβ T cells on mesenteric lymph node innate lymphoid cell populations during Toxoplasma gondii infection.PloS one · 2025Article
- Effects of diet and ovariectomy onBrain communications · 2025Article
- Mining parasites for their potential as novel therapeutic agents against cancer.Medical oncology (Northwood, London, England) · 2024Review
- The intersection of hostMicrobiology and molecular biology reviews : MMBR · 2024Review
- iNOS is necessary for GBP-mediated T. gondii clearance in murine macrophages via vacuole nitration and intravacuolar network collapse.Nature communications · 2024Article
- Toxoplasma-induced behavior changes - is microbial dysbiosis the missing link?Frontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2024Review
- Therapeutic potential ofBrain communications · 2024Article
- Effects ofFood and waterborne parasitology · 2023Article
- Tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, sphingolipid, and phosphatidylcholine metabolism are dysregulated inHeliyon · 2023Article
- Polysaccharide of Ganoderma lucidum Ameliorates Cachectic Myopathy Induced by the Combination Cisplatin plus Docetaxel in Mice.Microbiology spectrum · 2023Article
- Review
- A novel enemy of cancer: recent investigations into protozoan anti-tumor properties.Frontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Toxoplasma gondii is a protozoan parasite with a predation-mediated transmission cycle between rodents and felines. Intermediate hosts acquire Toxoplasma by eating parasite cysts which invade the small intestine, disseminate systemically and finally establish host life-long chronic infection in brain and muscles. Here we show that Toxoplasma infection can trigger a severe form of sustained cachexia: a disease of progressive lean weight loss that is a causal predictor of mortality in cancer, chronic disease and many infections. Toxoplasma cachexia is characterized by acute anorexia, systemic inflammation and loss of 20% body mass. Although mice recover from symptoms of peak sickness, they fail to regain muscle mass or visceral adipose depots. We asked whether the damage to the intestinal microenvironment observed at acute time points was sustained in chronic infection and could thereby play a role in sustaining cachexia. We found that parasites replicate in the same region of the distal jejunum/proximal ileum throughout acute infection, inducing the development of secondary lymphoid structures and severe, regional inflammation. Small intestine pathology was resolved by 5 weeks post-infection. However, changes in the commensal populations, notably an outgrowth of Clostridia spp., were sustained in chronic infection. Importantly, uninfected animals co-housed with infected mice display similar changes in commensal microflora but never display symptoms of cachexia, indicating that altered commensals are not sufficient to explain the cachexia phenotype alone. These studies indicate that Toxoplasma infection is a novel and robust model to study the immune-metabolic interactions that contribute to chronic cachexia development, pathology and potential reversal.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.