The Parasite That Makes You King
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- Опубликовано: 19 ноя 2023
- Being infected with a parasite is bad, right? So why are wolves in Yellowstone National Park infected with Toxoplasma gondii some of the most successful individuals
Hosted by: Stefan Chin
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Sources:
www.nature.com/articles/s4200...
www.future-science.com/doi/fu...
parasitesandvectors.biomedcen...
royalsocietypublishing.org/do...
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26859...
journals.biologists.com/jeb/a...
academic.oup.com/jmammal/arti...
www.canadianfieldnaturalist.c...
www.nature.com/articles/s4146...
www.sciencedirect.com/science...
Toxoplasma seroprevalence vs cougar density : www.nature.com/articles/s4200...
Predicted probabilities of infected wolf behaviour:
www.nature.com/articles/s4200...
Feedback loop of toxoplasma in wolves and cougars :
www.nature.com/articles/s4200...
Images
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www.nature.com/articles/s4200...
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If someone wrote a horror story of an Apex predator, that is super stealthy, hunts at night, has evolved to be a complete killing machine in everyway, and even when alone can cause mass devastation to a population of other creatures, and on top of that they produce a vast spreading parasite that draws you into them that also reduces your awareness and survival instinct around and might also have the side effect of causing you to worship them then you would think this was a monster. But no its just Mr Fluffers, he likes scratches behind the ear.
In one humans are space orc story, domestic cats actually became an invasive specie in some planet and became the dominant predator there. 🤣
That's a similar premise to _Cult of the Lamb_ only it's a prey animal that does the hunting.
@@nunyabiznes33 Domestic cats *have* become dominant predators on some islands here on Earth after humans colonized them. So that's a completely plausible story.
The apex predator is Toxo.
So, humans?
"Don't worry, 'pspspsps' the cougar. It's just like a big housecat." - Toxoplasmosis in front of a computer screen
"if not friend, why friend-shaped?" - toxoplasmosis
The increased sex drive is a lesser known effect of toxoplasmosis, but I think its interesting. As a part of its symbiosis with cats, it makes perfect sense that it would make the intended secondary hosts (rodents) breed more readily to keep the population high.
good point
It's quite intriguing that for a parasite that spreads horizontally (either by proximity or reproduction) the best evolutionary strategy would be to maximize the reproductive capabilities of its host
I don't see why Toxoplasmosis bacteria wouldn't increase the libido of most male mammalian hosts infected, and that would include us humans!
It could also explain why so many young men are involved in reckless behaviour that place their own and other lives at risk!
Yep, honestly I think it's even more widespread than 30%, I've been talking about this parasite for years to anyone who seems interested. trying to fight back! Haha
all the furries
30% infected, that could explain the internet cat video phenomenon
Nah, they're just cute. I've never owned a cat because my parents are allergic but I love watching cat videos.
Maybe so, but cats are pretty awesome regardless of parasitic infection imo
@@aamirrazak3467 that's what someone infected would say
@@aamirrazak3467def an infected one here
I've been saying this for years! We joke about cats being the boss of their "human." When really, cats are just the infection vector for the 🪱👑 controlling us all 😋
Many people are infected with toxoplasma. And the infection can be lifelong as the parasite lives permanently and silently in the brain. Most people don't go on to develop any symptoms from this but if one becomes very immunocompromised (classically HIV AIDS patients or if someone is on chronic immunosupression for another condition), they can get symptomatic toxoplasmosis. Symptoms in these cases are typically neurologic.
Same reason why pregnant women shouldn't be exposed to cat litter as congenital toxoplasmosis is very bad news for the growing fetus.
That’s frightening one can go their whole life infected by a silent parasite. I feel I could be as I have a cat and clean its litter
@@aamirrazak3467 I mean we have lots of those already living in us. There's herpes, HPV, CMV, HTLV, Mono, even TB in some populations, and many more! As long as we're healthy, these pathogens don't grow and cause problems.
@@aamirrazak3467 That isn't even the craziest part. T. gondii has been shown to cause infected mice to be less skittish around cats and in fact causes them to become attracted to cat urine, which they'd otherwise instinctively avoid, which suggests that T. gondii actually manipulates the mammalian brain to ensure its own propagation from host-to-host. It also has enzymes that make dopamine. Coupled with the fact that it likes to hide out in our nervous system and people with schizophrenia have a higher likelihood of having antibodies to T. gondii, the hypothesis is that T. gondii is the cause of the "cat lady" phenomenon.
@@lozoft9That’s a load of cat crap.
Up to 30% may have been infected, but are not currently infected. Most people successfully clear the parasite from their system. As far as pregnancy, unless you are either already immunocompromised when first infected or recently infected for the first time specifically, you will not transmit toxoplasma to the fetus. After the first infection, you build up enough immunity to eliminate the parasite before it can spread to fetus. Disappointed at the fear mongering. Normally scishow does a better job at covering these sorts of things adequately.
Wait, so when a dog's got that dog in him, it is actually because he's got that cat in him?
Omg yes 😂
The more I learn about out dang toxoplasmosis the more weird it gets.
nice @
At least it won't cause Planet of the Wolves (as far as I know).
~Mackyle Conner Wotring
Toxoplasmosis and other members of the group Apicomplexa evolved from single celled algae, their chloroplasts have been modified to assist with parasitism
Front of shirt: LONE WOLF
Back of shirt: POSSIBLY DUE TO A PARASITIC INFECTION
Important for pregnant humans, too: Toxoplasmosis can cause damage to the brain and eyes of growing fetuses.
Of that reason, when you are pregnant you shouldn't handle cat poop/litter. Or if you have to, do so wearing gloves.
Of note: this is mostly if you newly catch toxoplasmosis while pregnant. People who were infected a long time ago have made antibodies that will prevent the bacteria from harming the fetus (as long as you're not severely immunocompromised).
Handling cat poop is a bad idea anyway. Also gross.
A friend who shelters cats got a really bad infection and was treated I believe for this. Having said that, when I asked to get tested for toxoplasmosis my healthcare provider would not okay it.
Yeah it's surprisingly hard to get tested
@@moondriedtomatojust as our cat overlords intended
@@sonofben3322 You mean Toxo overlords. Cats are just their tool.
By golly, they're infected. The toxoplasma doesn't want you to know how much is left in you!
'murica
Hahaha that transition to the calendar ad 😂
I wonder if people that end up trying to pet tigers in zoos tend to have toxoplasmosis.
As someone likely infected, there is a non-zero chance my final words will be 'Does big kitty need a hug?'
“Here, kitty kitty” 💀
And that's why my partner isn't supposed to clean the kitty litter for at least 6 months after he gets his transplant.
BTW wolves also eat rats, etc. So there’s a vector too.
"It's the breeding individuals. It's hard being at the top." No, they're parents. It's hard to be a parent.
(4.10 minutes)
“If it works out well for you, it’s mutualism instead” is a GREAT statement. Many things considered a parasite actually have important immunomodulatory effects and the lack of them might even be a contributing cause of why we have so much allergies and autoimmune diseases. It also drastically increases alpha diversity of the stool microbiome. Hunter-gatherers seem full of parasites and yet feel great and are in great health.
Much like herpes, training the immune system.
@@kylerBDUh... no. To both of you.
@@nunyabusiness3786 there’s a very extensive research paper called “Helminth Induced Immunoregulation and Novel Therapeutic Avenue of Allergy” on PubMed which supports my statement. People are overly hygienic and it’s causing tremendous suffering through allergic, immune dysregulation, and autoimmune disease. It’s incidence has increased much faster than genetics can explain.
So don’t be such a prude and learn to be a bit open minded.
Nah, it's alright, I'll pass my turn on syphilis, brain eating amoebas and pretty much any life form that isn't microscopic and that isn't found in all of the foods I commonly eat.
Do hunter-gatherers _really_ all 'feel great' though? I find it hard to believe they also don't complain about their knees and back approaching middle age - sure they might have excellent stamina... until the early onset arthritis, due to constantly stressing and wearing out their joints everyday.
There's give and take with everything.
I don't need a parasite to love my cat.
And your little kitty doesn't need a parasite to feel a vague sense of indifference to your presence! 😸
@@Naptosis I wish she was indifferent to my presence sometimes. She's way too clingy for a cat, lol. It might be because I rescued her. I never wanted a cat.
That's exactly what the parasite wants you to believe....😂
@@edzejandehaan9265 Damn. 🤔🤣
"Hey, Gondii..."
"Yes Pupu?"
"So, I thought we had a deal here... I let you breed in me, you infect small animals, and you bring them to me to eat, yeah?"
"Oh, sure. Sure. Ancient pact and stuff. Why?"
"Yes... why is there A PACK OF WOLVES here now? I thought we agreed on SMALL animals?"
"Aaaaahh, well... see. I mean, they're cute as puppies, y'know?"
I read this paper a while ago, months at least. The magnitude of the effect totally blew my mind!
i love my parasite overlords! and my beautiful kitties that i mysteriously started loving so much more a few years back after having one i directly took care of.
Excuse me what
uh oh, i've seen that before, i've played the neurax in Plague inc.
Oh yeah so mysterious, I've never heard of a human developing a connection to a non-human before 🤡
The things is, Toxoplasmosis was associate with slow reaction and may cause an accident if the the person drive vehicle
No, that was just an article you read on Facebook because you aren't smart enough to realize when you're being taken for a ride.
@@ssgoko88 I don't have Facebook duh. This is from medical research decade ago and I don't remember which University made.
I am immediately renaming my cat Mrs. Fluffikins.
Apparently by her complete lack of acknowledgement she's ok with this.
SciShow is a national treasure
Absolutely
There is also a supposition that the fetish of eating others or being eaten - vorarephilia - is more prevalent in those with Toxoplasma Gondii infections. No actual data has been gathered about this beyond testimonials of vorarephiles who claim to have grown up with cats.
I have no desire to eat anyone,or be eaten.
Am fascinated by this, as someone with adjacent kinks who grew up with cats. Would love to see studies on it.
oh no
I read a study that humans who clean their cat boxes can become infected with a parasite, that makes them more likely to be an entrepreneur or business owner.
So basically, Toxoplasma is the real life equivalent of Pokerus
Damn now I gotta buy a calendar just cause of that perfect ad spot
Let's see, I love cats and grew up with them. Left home early to have a mature relationship and more cats. Yup.
what if that's exactly what parasite jimmy wants you to think? positive reinforcement, you think something like: "oh, my clothes are on fire... feels warm though" and little jimmy juices you up with the chems that your brain loves
Toxoplasmosis almost killed my brother. The er thought it was mumps at first so the treatment was delayed. The thought was he picked it up hunting here in Florida. Also aren’t most wolf fans space nerds? I am.
"Also aren’t most wolf fans space nerds?"
The Starfox fandom, in a nutshell.
Toxoplasmosis _usually_ isn’t symptomatic in healthy humans. Was your brother an infant when he got it, or immunocompromised?
because Florida.
😮 have you ever tried Warhammer 40,000 ?
Hunters are psychos
Thanks, I'll try to use that calendar on my next hiking trip ^_^
I was perfectly content with my Bizarre Beasts calendar. So you had to do your thing with the JWST calendar. Now I'll be totally antsy wanting it, too. Thanks, kid. 😮
That's a super-smooth transition to an ad! 😁👏🏼
I absolutely love the honesty in the transition from wolves with toxoplasma to the jwst
That made me LOL! 😂
We all love space and I appreciate the call out 😂
"Nobody wants to play host to a parasite..."
Idk man, if they end up like Migi sign me up lmao
That's mutualism, I would say it's more like the fish tongue parasite but the fact that it becomes effectively a weapon that fight any threat, kind of means you're better off surviving with than without it, so I wouldn't really call them a parasite
@@DexyD20 well Migi only ended up there by mistake. The intent was to take over. However, if you assumed that I fully meant for one that messed up and just ended up as my new arm you would ne 1,000% justified in assuming that and you'd also be correct that I did mean to imply that initially.
@@freedomandguns3231 that makes complete sense💜 I was thinking about how it ended and how they wanted to work with people at the end, at least I believe that's how it ended, so during the episodes they definitely would be a parasite, but if they ended up working with people like i think they wanted to then they would have become mutualists. Like imagine them taking over handicapped people's legs so they can walk again and stuff like that, that would be really cool Even without them being amazing weapons, but yeah they only become mutualists depending on where in the timeline we want to set ourselves 💜
@@DexyD20 I believe some really did work with the people beyond the Chin one and Migi, but a LOT were killed by the humans. If I remember correctly a lot just became wiser about it and would rarely eat humans mostly living off of human food like what the one lady parasyte with the baby mentioned. Such a good show. But yeah Migi and the chin one are definitely in the mutualist category for sure.
😂 I don't want anything like John Carpenters The Thing OR Venom apart of me
Or infected wolves are 46X times more likely to be expelled/ leave the pack. That study couldn't follow a proper trail :/
good point... maybe the other wolves notice changes and drive the infected away to protect the healthy and little ones
I still miss SciShow Space.
PBS Space-time, Anton Petrov, Dr Becky, and Fraser Cain are good alternatives
@@Mr.Anders0n_yeah, no shade but pbs space time always had more way more hyped than sci show space
@@-dennis3755 maybe recently, but I really liked many of their older videos that weren't shy of getting into the details. I remember some of them were really difficult to get and broke my brain ☺️. But now that you've mentioned it, they haven't done a hardcore video in a while.
Being infected by this & having cat allergy might suck big time
@ Stefan: you've done a wonderful job of promoting a space calendar in a video about animal parasites 😊
A hat with an orca wearing a hat of it's own. Fantastic! 😎🙂
We miss you on tangents ❤
"shout out space merch on a video about wolves" 😂
That's def a tall ask. Nicely done
Oh Jesus my fiancee literally huffs our cat, scary realization
oh no... is she walking around with her arms stretched out and uttering the same words again and again: "be one of uuuuuuus!"? :O if yes then run, my dude... run
I swear to god i read that not 3 seconds after as i was picturing myself snuggling my face into a fluffy cat
@@Adan11961it's best feel ever 😂😂😂
0:42 no not kitty litter parasite.
CAT SCRATCH FEVER! got a whole classic rock song, how do they miss this reference?
Me with a cat who eats out of a antique crystal dessert bowl.
And here we thought that cat people being more independent and capable was just a psychological trait. :D
I understand it could be implicated in schizophrenia too. There maybe some truth to the "crazy cat lady" label.
It’s subtle, but I want to point out how he never actually says the word alpha here. The leader of the pack is always called the leader, or the breeding pair.
I appreciate that!
Back on topic, though, parasites are terrifying and fascinating in so many different ways. It is insane that something so tiny can influence An animal as large as a wolf to do what the parasite wants.
Why is alpha offensive?
@@andy23r it's not "offensive", its an outdated and inaccurate term based off a fundamentally flawed series of behavioral experiments in dogs
@DrStuff142 Okay, thanks
@@andy23rI don’t think the wolf cares if it’s offensive 😂. They’re just saying that in recent years as wildlife biologists have found out more about the social structure of wolves, “alpha” has become more of a misnomer. Wolf packs having a family structure being led by a breeding pair is the more accepted social hierarchy now.
@@93drizzit, the crazy thing is, it's not even a recent development. David Mech's 1970 book popularized the "apha wolf" theory, but he's disavowed it for decades & tried to get his publisher to stop printing his book.
next time you think your cat is in charge remember he is also a pawn of the parasite
Stefan, love your humor.😀
Very interesting. Love it! Can we have a video on toxoplasmosis and the link with mental illness, please? You guys always explain things way better than random google results :P
It makes you less adverse to risky behaviour in general. A benifit to some, 160 km accident on a motorcycle for others.
Makes some wolves pack leaders, others dead or maimed from one too many fights.
Stefan! Your little outtakes during this video were hilarious! You should try stand-up comedy. 😅
Yes! This was a very enjoyable video!
the more I hear about the lesser known symptoms the more I'm convinced that I'm infected
Can’t get a message to my brain, I can’t control myself….
so what you're saying is that cats controlling their hoomans is scientifically proven??
sounds right to me
6:27 HAHAHA that was awesome.
This video suggests causation but did any of the studies actually mention that? Is it not plausible that the wolves with higher levels of risk taking behavior are more likely to become infected with the parasite?
Good question. 👍
Since finding good evidence for causal relationships typically requires randomly assigning individuals in a study, I would imagine that no (modern, ethical) studies have actually acquired any of the evidence to significantly support the claim in the video (by giving randomly selected wolves from a group toxoplasmosis). I haven't looked through the bibliography, but it seems likely that by the time toxoplasmosis testing became feasible for studies, it was no longer accepted to randomly give wolves diseases.
Now, to be fair to SciShow, this still does give some support to its claim (the shown increased chance of riskier behaviors given that they were infected with toxoplasmosis would still be more likely if there was a causal relationship than not), but it would have been nice to hear a little bit more about this from the video.
Since I have this book on my desk and haven't really read it yet: For interested readers, There's a book titled "Causal Inference For Statistics, Social, and Biomedical Sciences, an Introduction" by Imbens and Rubin. Correlation does not imply causation, so just knowing that dogs with higher rates of infection also tends to have higher rates of testosterone, does not imply the infection causes high testosterone.
It could also be the case that wolves with high testosterone are more likely to eat puma feces or enter puma territory. Or there could be an unconsidered factor that drives both infection and testosterone. Or it could be the case that both probability of infection and testosterone levels are increased by innate independence or learned behaviors of the wolves, possibly in a feedback loop. Or it could be something else. idk, but it reminded me to read my book.
or even that the research is biased... like we test the more dominant wolves and find that they are infected but miss out on the docile wolf that is also infected
As always in SciShow videos, the studies are listed in the description. You can check them yourself.
RIP, Tommy.
We need better testing for this
RIP wee Tommy.
I’m not infected, I’m blessed!
Never thought I needed a pogging chimp, but here I stand corrected.
there is a infinity loop of orcas wearing hats
I'm not really sure toxoplasmosis explains all the stupid stunts people do around large animals at Yellowstone, but it might. In any case, _Toxoplasma gondii_ can be the basis of a number of Darwin Awards.
Along with the Grim Reaper bursting into laughter at hearing stupid death stories.
I like coming in contact with cougars. Lol
and yet, here you stand and none of them have eaten you up... unless you found the ones that like to play with their food ;O
*There are hot cougars in your area* 🐈♨️
@@OLBICHLI can't tell if the joke went over your head, or if you made a joke that went over my head. Well played, sir.
think this was a lost importunity to tell pregnant women to stay away from cats for that reason until pregnancy ended, or at least thats what i kept hearing for years
good video
Does it cause any problems for the cats though?
@6:20 Space Wolves! 🐺🚀 the Emperor's fangs
Introducing the sequels to Mad Rat Dead: Wild Wolf and Crazy Chimp
"The top leader themself"
Is there a way to test if you have it?
Yeah... pregnant women usually test for it.
I probably have toxoplasma gondii...my life will likely end with a big "pspspsps" in some national park 😂 look at those adorable cougars in the video 😍
Space merch presentation par excellence 👌😂
"Mr. Fluffykins" - 😂😂😂
Nice gizzard reference
All hail the Absolute! 😅
How can almost 30% of humans be infected if the life cycle requires a cat for reproduction? Unless that just means "30% at one point in time had it" and not "currently have it", I would think most people aren't around cats often enough to maintain an infection (and I assume 30% of the world aren't cat owners).
1:55 Yeah... Met my first cat at 8. Loved her to death.
Never stopped to love those paws since... 😻
(definitely NOT infected tho) 🪱😱🥰
Infected!!
Yikes
Also according a study in 2022, people who are infected with Toxoplasma are averagely more attractive than uninfected persons.
Either the parasite selectively chooses host with certain physical attributes or it's actually affecting the physiques of the host to let them spread inter-humans easier.
..........so i'd rather have cats than not have cats, even if it is just the parasite telling me cats are awesome, i love cats regardless
That's why I'm pretty sure I don't have it - because I'm still a dog person
Im not a canine expert by any stretch but... isnt that "wolf" on the highway shot a coyote?
ahah I was wondering. that was a spooky looking 'wolf' til I realized
I love how you spin the James Webb calendar stuff, makes it less cringy to hear - and say, too.
Is that why I keep trying to wrestle bears?
nah, man... that one is on you :D
@@OLBICHL Well dang.. 😂
Pretty sure i got this as a kid
I'm starting to rethink that I tell my family I'd be glad if my cat ate me if I died.....😅
Explains people who say their house doesn't stink cat.
I'm not seeing a link in the description for the DFTBA site.
I have 5 cats. I'm not horribly disgusted by the smell of cat pee. I don't like it, but it doesn't make me gag. This might not be good.
Thats why lions are the "kings of the animals".
So this clip is doing a sidebar in which the cliche 'alpha mentality' is more justifiably to do with dominance and power versus 'family unit' that is trying to take place of it?
Here i thought gout was the only disease that made you a king.
There are a few leaders of industry and politics that may wanna get themselves checked out for the sake of the rest of humanity.
Surprising that Toxoplasma gondii can't use hyenas as a definitive host, given as they are feliform. Apparently that's not close enough.
So the deal is that the parasite makes you a Chad, which is bad if you're a vulnerable scavenger, like a rat, but good if you're a social predator, like a wolf.
That's dope.
I'm pretty sure that being insensitive to the smell of cat pee is a contributing factor in humans getting more cats. At least it does nothing to tell them enough is enough. Yes, weird parasite for sure! I wonder how weird other parasites are.
Hubble was such a great name. Who tf was in charge of naming the other one? And why?😢
Could it worked on reverse?
I'm not a fan of cats but cat seems to easily liking me.
I mean, whenever i goes to a place with "wild" cat, the cat tend to came to me first than dozen other people even though I'm ignoring the cat