Toxoplasmosis is known to occur in white-tailed deer, mule deer, elk, moose, pronghorn antelope, bison, bobcats, caribou, black bears, polar bears, mink, red foxes, raccoons, skunks, and many bird and rodent species. All warm-blooded animals including mammals, birds, and humans are susceptible to infection and can act as intermediate hosts. Feral cats are probably the main source of environmental contamination with infective eggs, but many species of wild cats can also act as definitive hosts. Species AffectedĬats are the definitive hosts for T. People become infected when they consume food or water contaminated with eggs from cat feces, or when they consume undercooked meat (from domestic livestock or wild game) containing tissue cysts. However, people with a weakened immune system can suffer severe illness, and when women become infected for the first time during pregnancy, serious birth defects can result. In most people, this infection is asymptomatic.

Toxoplasmosis is a common infection in humans, and an estimated 60 million people in the United States are infected with this protozoan. gondii infection uncommonly causes clinical disease, but can occasionally result in severe clinical illness, especially when infected at the same time with another parasite or disease organism. Toxoplasmosis is a disease of wild and domestic animals and humans caused by the single-celled protozoan parasite known as Toxoplasma gondii.

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