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charisstomaOkay remember this?:
Caterpillars Exploding From “Zombie Virus” Outbreak
http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/caterpillars-exploding-from-zombie-virus-outbreak/
Typically, oak eggar caterpillars stay relatively low and avoid climbing towards light sources to avoid getting eaten by birds and other predators. However, if they have the misfortune of being infected by this baculovirus, it messes with their response to light, causing them to climb to the top of plants in their dazed and confused state.
Their bodies then become a liquefied gloopy mess and pop, thereby spreading the infectious virus to other insects on the plants below and allowing the outbreak to continue.
And there's this:
Toxoplasmosis, a parasitic infection that can be transmitted through cat poop, causes mice to be less cautious about cats and therefore to get eaten the next part of the life cycle of the parasite.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/once-a-toxoplasma-parasite-infects-mice-they-never-fear-cats-again-9757150/
This study on the behavioral effects of toxoplasmosis: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2526142/
Although latent infection with Toxoplasma gondii is among the most prevalent of human infections, it has been generally assumed that, except for congenital transmission, it is asymptomatic. ... Possible mechanisms by which T. gondii may affect human behavior include its effect on dopamine and on testosterone.
So anyway........ the article's title says it all...
Toxoplasmosis May Be Linked To 'Crazy Cat Lady' Syndrome As It Alters Brain And Behavior
http://www.medicaldaily.com/crazy-cat-lady-toxoplasmosis-parasitic-infection-brain-and-behavior-390436
Do we NEED a reason to love cats?!
Anyway there's this article:
Could 'Zombie Deer' Disease Spread to Humans?
https://www.livescience.com/61504-chronic-wasting-disease-spread-humans.html?utm_source=notification
Deer in at least 22 U.S. states and parts of Canada have died from a neurological disease called "chronic wasting disease," according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Chronic wasting disease can cause a number of symptoms in animals, including drastic weight loss, a lack of coordination, drooling, listlessness or a "blank" facial expression, and a lack of fear of people,... sound familiar?
It infects members of the deer (cervid) family, including white-tailed deer, mule deer, reindeer, moose and elk.
The disease was first discovered in Colorado in 1967, according to the CDC, and so far, no cases in humans have ever been reported.
The...infectious proteins that cause chronic wasting disease — called prions — don't easily jump between species, ... these proteins can evolve to infect other species, .. bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or "mad cow disease,"
..a study showed that macaque monkeys could get the disease from eating infected meat. Out of five monkeys that were fed infected white-tailed-deer meat, three tested positive for chronic wasting disease..
Well at least the deer aren't out to bite you while droning out 'brains'.
Caterpillars Exploding From “Zombie Virus” Outbreak
http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/caterpillars-exploding-from-zombie-virus-outbreak/
Typically, oak eggar caterpillars stay relatively low and avoid climbing towards light sources to avoid getting eaten by birds and other predators. However, if they have the misfortune of being infected by this baculovirus, it messes with their response to light, causing them to climb to the top of plants in their dazed and confused state.
Their bodies then become a liquefied gloopy mess and pop, thereby spreading the infectious virus to other insects on the plants below and allowing the outbreak to continue.
And there's this:
Toxoplasmosis, a parasitic infection that can be transmitted through cat poop, causes mice to be less cautious about cats and therefore to get eaten the next part of the life cycle of the parasite.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/once-a-toxoplasma-parasite-infects-mice-they-never-fear-cats-again-9757150/
This study on the behavioral effects of toxoplasmosis: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2526142/
Although latent infection with Toxoplasma gondii is among the most prevalent of human infections, it has been generally assumed that, except for congenital transmission, it is asymptomatic. ... Possible mechanisms by which T. gondii may affect human behavior include its effect on dopamine and on testosterone.
So anyway........ the article's title says it all...
Toxoplasmosis May Be Linked To 'Crazy Cat Lady' Syndrome As It Alters Brain And Behavior
http://www.medicaldaily.com/crazy-cat-lady-toxoplasmosis-parasitic-infection-brain-and-behavior-390436
Do we NEED a reason to love cats?!
Anyway there's this article:
Could 'Zombie Deer' Disease Spread to Humans?
https://www.livescience.com/61504-chronic-wasting-disease-spread-humans.html?utm_source=notification
Deer in at least 22 U.S. states and parts of Canada have died from a neurological disease called "chronic wasting disease," according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Chronic wasting disease can cause a number of symptoms in animals, including drastic weight loss, a lack of coordination, drooling, listlessness or a "blank" facial expression, and a lack of fear of people,... sound familiar?
It infects members of the deer (cervid) family, including white-tailed deer, mule deer, reindeer, moose and elk.
The disease was first discovered in Colorado in 1967, according to the CDC, and so far, no cases in humans have ever been reported.
The...infectious proteins that cause chronic wasting disease — called prions — don't easily jump between species, ... these proteins can evolve to infect other species, .. bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or "mad cow disease,"
..a study showed that macaque monkeys could get the disease from eating infected meat. Out of five monkeys that were fed infected white-tailed-deer meat, three tested positive for chronic wasting disease..
Well at least the deer aren't out to bite you while droning out 'brains'.
