Do parasites turn you into a crazy cat lady?

The archetype of the crazy cat lady is embedded in our culture. You know the type. But could your cats actually cause that kind of behavior? Perhaps a parasite taking over your brain? Even if you don't think it can control *your* mind, it does seem like Toxoplasma gondii messes with the brains of rodents, the perfect cat prey. And although mice and rats are simpler creatures, our human brains and bodies may be vulnerable to it as well. Join Alie as she lays down the facts and explores the neuroscience of crazy cat ladies.

_Sources_
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Dass, Shantala Arundhati Hari, and Ajai Vyas. “Toxoplasma Gondii Infection Reduces Predator Aversion in Rats through Epigenetic Modulation in the Host Medial Amygdala.” Molecular Ecology, vol. 23, no. 24, 2014, pp. 6114–6122., doi:10.1111/mec.12888.
McAuliffe, Kathleen. “How Your Cat Is Making You Crazy.” The Atlantic, Atlantic Media Company, 18 May 2015, www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/03/how-your-cat-is-making-you-crazy/308873/.
Remington, Jack S., et al. “Toxoplasmosis.” Infectious Diseases of the Fetus and Newborn, 2011, pp. 918–1041., doi:10.1016/b978-1-4160-6400-8.00031-6.
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Webster, J. P., et al. “Toxoplasma Gondii Infection, from Predation to Schizophrenia: Can Animal Behaviour Help Us Understand Human Behaviour?” Journal of Experimental Biology, vol. 216, no. 1, 2012, pp. 99–112., doi:10.1242/jeb.074716.

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_Credits_
The following videos were used for educational purposes and therefore fall under fair use:
“Giant Russian Rat Attacks Cats” by Butku5
“Wild Rat Has Epic Stand-Off With Cat” by Viral Press
“Cat sees rat….” by Claude Alff
“Fearless rat!! Rat getting mad because cat keep playing on it” by amy Liu
“Mouse fights Cat - this mouse is fearless!” by FreedomPublisher
“Mouse Brain Infected with Toxoplasma gondii - Cat is annoyed” by Paws and Purrs
“3. Jaroslav Flegr - Show Jana Krause 2. 9. 2020”
“Rabid Raccoon” by Dale Nolan Jr.
“Rabid Coyote Attacks Car with family inside” by John Schroter
“Brain Parasite Makes Mice Fearless” by Scientific American
“Christmas with the Cat Lady” from Saturday Night Live
“Girly Edition” from The Simpsons
“A Clockwork Orange” (1971)
“Death Becomes Her” (1992)
“Batman Returns” (1992)
“Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” (2007)
“Catwoman” (2004)

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