RATS with toxoplasmosis develop an unfortunate habit: a suicidal attraction to cats. But when the rats are treated with antipsychotic drugs such as haloperidol – used to control the symptoms of schizophrenia – their fondness for feline company dramatically decreases.
The parasite responsible for toxoplasmosis, Toxoplasma gondii, manipulates rat behaviour in order to complete its reproductive cycle in the cat. Joanne Webster’s team at Imperial College London found that rats infected with the parasite chose to spend nearly three times as much time in containers holding woodchips treated with feline urine as did uninfected rats. When given anti-Toxoplasma drugs, they…
