The brain infecting parasite returns

Women infected with Toxoplasma gondii have increased risk of attempting suicide: study

This seems particularly bad news about this widespread parasite:

 The study found that women infected with T. gondii were one and a half times more likely to attempt suicide compared to those who were not infected, and the risk seemed to rise with increasing levels of the T. gondii antibodies. Previous mental illness did not appear to significantly alter these findings. The relative risk was even higher for violent suicide attempts. In contrast to the number of women who attempted suicide using any method (517) or violent methods (78), the number of fatalities through suicides in the cohort (18, with eight in Toxoplasma-positive mothers) was still too small to be conclusively analyzed statistically.

The researchers stress that there is more work to be done on the topic, but it stills seem bad news to me.

In other toxoplasma news, I'm sure I read somewhere about work being done in Australia on it.  Yes, here we go

A CAIRNS molecular biologist is working with an international research team to develop a vaccine to prevent cats from infecting humans with a potentially fatal parasite.

James Cook University scientist Rob Walker is focusing his research on Toxoplasma gondii, a parasite that is dangerous to pregnant women because it can cause miscarriage or congenital defects to the unborn child, and can also kill people whose immune systems are weakened.....

Dr Walker, based at the Queensland Tropical Health Alliance at JCU Smithfield, is collaborating with scientists at the University of Zurich and at the National Institute of Health in the US on the pioneer research project.

It is a challenging field of research because scientists cannot replicate, in the lab, the fertilisation process which happens inside the gut of a cat, Dr Walker said.

Dr Walker’s research will focus on how to prevent the cyst-like embryo from forming its protective shell, which may be key to stopping the transmission process. His goal would be to create a vaccine for cats to stop the parasite from being transmitted to humans.

Good luck.

UPDATE:  it's a top week for media discussion of this intriguing brain parasite!   In Slate, it's noted that just as toxoplasma in rats makes them actually kinda like cat pee smell, it might have a bit of a similar effect on people:

In a recent study, Czech scientists gave men and women towels scented with the urine of various animals—horses, lions, hyenas, cats, dogs—which they rated for “pleasantness.” Turns out, men who tested positive for Toxo found the smell of cat urine more pleasant than men without Toxo. For Toxo researchers like me, this was a shock but not entirely surprising. Why? Toxo does approximately the same thing to rats.

 Hmm.  I seem to have missed that til now.  The Slate article is generally about perfumes and their use of animal scents, and it's all of interest.