<i>Toxoplasma gondii</i>-induced region-specific disintegration in glutamatergic neurotransmission is linked to cognitive impairments in mice.

ABSTRACT: Chronic infection with the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) elicits distinct alterations in both the immune and nervous system of the host. Previous studies correlated the persistent neuroinflammatory response triggered by chronic T. gondii infection to specific behavioral alterations. Here, we causally link chronic cerebral T. gondii infection to cognitive and motor impairments in mice, as well as to the altered brain glutamatergic signaling in hippocampus, striatum, and cortex. By combining synaptic composition analysis assessed via flow synaptometry with the standard sulfadiazine treatment, we demonstrated the regional specificity of the detected alterations of cerebral T. gondii infection. Importantly, our b

SUBMITTER: Savaateev I 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12818283 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature