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3-D Imaging and Analysis of Neurons Infected In Vivo with Toxoplasma gondii
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Association between Toxoplasma gondii infection and thyroid dysfunction: a case-control seroprevalence study
Cosme Alvarado-Esquivel1, Agar Ramos-Nevarez2, Carlos Alberto Guido-Arreola2
1Biomedical Research Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine and Nutrition, Juárez University of Durango State, Avenida Universidad S/N, 34000, Durango, Mexico. alvaradocosme@yahoo.com.
BMC Infectious Diseases
|September 20, 2019
Summary
Toxoplasma gondii infection is not generally linked to thyroid disease. However, younger individuals (≤50 years) with thyroid dysfunction or hypothyroidism showed a lower prevalence of T. gondii antibodies, suggesting a potential negative association in this demographic.
Area of Science:
- Infectious Diseases
- Endocrinology
- Epidemiology
Background:
- The relationship between Toxoplasma gondii infection and thyroid disease remains under-investigated.
- This study aimed to explore the association between T. gondii seropositivity and thyroid dysfunction.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between Toxoplasma gondii seropositivity and thyroid dysfunction.
- To determine if T. gondii infection prevalence differs between patients with thyroid disease and healthy controls.
Main Methods:
- An age- and gender-matched case-control study was conducted.
- 176 patients with hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism and 528 controls were analyzed.
- Anti-Toxoplasma IgG antibodies were detected using enzyme-linked immunoassay.
Main Results:
- Overall, no significant association was found between T. gondii seropositivity and thyroid dysfunction (OR=0.66; P=0.23).
- Younger patients (≤50 years) with thyroid dysfunction exhibited significantly lower T. gondii seroprevalence compared to controls (1.2% vs 8.6%; OR=0.12; P=0.01).
- A significant negative association was observed for hypothyroidism in the younger cohort (0% vs 9.0%; P=0.003).
Conclusions:
- Thyroid dysfunction is not generally associated with T. gondii seropositivity.
- A notable negative association exists between T. gondii infection and thyroid dysfunction/hypothyroidism in younger individuals (≤50 years).
- Further research is warranted to validate this specific negative association.
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