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- Journal made by "PARASITOLOGISTS for PARASITOLOGISTS"
- IN-HOUSE production with careful revision & proof-reading
- Increase of APC from January 1, 2025
- Current ISI Impact Factor: IF 2025 = 2.0
- Current volume: 73: 2026
- Special Issue: Three Decades of Latent Toxoplasmosis
- Published since 1954 – freely available!
International journal that covers all branches of animal parasitology, including morphology, taxonomy, biology, biochemistry, physiology, immunology and molecular biology of parasites, host-parasite relationships and parasite evolution.
Special Issue: Three Decades of Latent Toxoplasmosis
Flegr J., Ullmann J., Španiel F., Toman J., Hůla M., Šebánková B., Petrusová J., Novotný P., Včelák J., Kaňková Š. 2026: Does latent Toxoplasma infection mimic the immune profile of schizophrenia? Sex-specific cytokine and brain-marker alterations suggest partial overlap. Special Issue on Toxoplasmosis. Folia Parasitol. 73: 006
Postolache T.T., Duncan E., Yen P., Potocki E., Barnhart M., Federline A., Massa N., Dagdag A., Joseph J., Wadhawan A., Capan C., Forton C., Lowry C.A., Ortmeyer H.K., Brenner L.A. 2025: Toxoplasma gondii, suicidal behavior and suicide risk factors in US Veterans enrolled in mental health treatment. Special Issue on Toxoplasmosis. Folia Parasitol. 72: 002.
Torrey E.F. 2024: The linking of toxoplasmosis and schizophrenia. Folia Parasitol. 71: 016.
Latifi A., Flegr J., Kaňková Š. 2025: Re-assessing host manipulation in Toxoplasma: the underexplored role of sexual transmission – evidence, mechanisms, implications. Special Issue on Toxoplasmosis. Folia Parasitol. 72: 015.
Webster J.P. 2025: Who makes the decisions? Uncovering the evolutionary implications and clinical applications of Toxoplasma gondii’s Fatal Feline Attraction. Special Issue on Toxoplasmosis. Folia Parasitol. 72: 016
Flegr J. 2025: Thirty years of studying latent toxoplasmosis: behavioural, physiological, and health insights: description of a struggle. Special Issue on Toxoplasmosis. Folia Parasitol. 72: 005.
Tautanova A., Kiyan V., Dusmagambetov M., Almysheva T.A., Dusmagambetova A. 2026: Three decades of research on molecular genetic characteristics of Echinococcus spp.: a bibliometric study. Folia Parasitol. 73: 001.
Ullmann J., Flegr J., Nouzová K., Včelák J., Kaňková Š. 2025: Chronic inflammation in pregnant women with latent toxoplasmosis and explanation of discordant results of serological tests for toxoplasmosis. Special Issue on Toxoplasmosis. Folia Parasitol. 72: 021.
Vyas A. 2024: Nuts and bolts of the behavioural manipulation by Toxoplasma gondii. Special Issue on Toxoplasmosis. Folia Parasitol. 71: 017.
Catchpole A., Zabriskie B.N., Embley B., Kharazi H., Clarke R., Templeton G., Hunt C., Gale S.D., Hedges D.W. 2025: Association between type-2 diabetes and Toxoplasma gondii seropositivity: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Special Issue on Toxoplasmosis. Folia Parasitol. 72: 024.
Postolache T.T. 2025: Toxoplasma gondii and suicidal behaviour: discovery, cross-diagnostic confirmation and pathway exploration. Special Issue on Toxoplasmosis. Folia Parasitol. 72: 025.
Folia Parasitologica - Most viewed articles
Results 1 to 30 of 3110:
The Capsalidae (Monogenea: Monopisthocotylea): a review of diversity, classification and phylogeny with a note about species complexes
Ian D. Whittington
Folia Parasitologica 51[2/3] 109-122 (2004) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2004.016 
The Capsalidae are monogeneans parasitizing 'skin', fins and gills of marine fishes. Some capsalids are pathogenic to cultivated fish and a few have caused epizootic events. It is a cosmopolitan family with broad host associations (elasmobranchs and teleosts, including sturgeons). Approximately 200 capsalid species are placed in nine subfamilies and 44-46 genera, some of which are well known (Benedenia, Capsala, Entobdella, Neobenedenia). Sturgeons host two capsalid species (Nitzschiinae) and 15 species in five genera are reliably reported from elasmobranchs. The combination of ancient (shark, ray, sturgeon) and modern (teleost)...
The use of morphometric characters to discriminate specimens of laboratory-reared and wild populations of Gyrodactylus salaris and G. thymalli (Monogenea)
Andrew P. Shinn, Haakon Hansen, Kjetil Olstad, Lutz Bachmann, Tor A. Bakke
Folia Parasitologica 51[2/3] 239-252 (2004) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2004.029
Gyrodactylus thymalli Žitňan, 1960 and G. salaris Malmberg, 1957 have an indistinguishable ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) DNA sequence, but exhibit surprisingly high levels of intra- and interspecific sequence variation of the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I (CO1) gene. To test whether different populations of these reportedly very similar species could be discriminated using morphometric methods, we examined the morphometry of four different populations representing different mitochondrial clades. Twenty five point-to-point measurements, including five new characters of the attachment hooks, were recorded from three Norwegian...
Chaetotaxy applied to Norwegian Gyrodactylus salaris Malmberg, 1957 (Monogenea) clades and related species from salmonids
Tor A. Bakke, Kariann B. Nilsen, Andrew P. Shinn
Folia Parasitologica 51[2/3] 253-261 (2004) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2004.030
Gyrodactylus salaris Malmberg, 1957 is a major pathogen of wild Salmo salar L. parr populations in Norway, and its delimitation from non-pathogenic species is important. The present study was undertaken to test the power of chaetotaxy to differentiate between three populations belonging to both the same and different clades (as stated by mtDNA) of G. salaris, in addition to three different species of gyrodactylids (G. salaris, G. thymalli and G. caledoniensis). The gyrodactylids were processed for chaetotaxy in situ and a maximum of 50 specimens per collection site were used to construct a generalised...
Myxozoan genera: definition and notes on taxonomy, life-cycle terminology and pathogenic species
Jiří Lom, Iva Dyková
Folia Parasitologica 53[1] 1-36 (2006) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2006.001
A list of myxozoan genera is presented in the current taxonomical scheme. These genera are defined; their type species and most important pathogens along with their hosts are listed. Simultaneously, definitions of actinospore stages representing sexual stages of the myxosporean life cycle are given; altogether, 17 actinospore collective groups with 180 types have been described. Life cycles of the two classes of the phylum Myxozoa, Malacosporea and Myxosporea, are briefly outlined with specification of the appropriate terms. Up to now, 4 malacosporean and 2,180 myxosporean species assigned to a total of 62 genera, have been established. The surviving...
Coccidia of rabbit: a review
Michal Pakandl
Folia Parasitologica 56[3] 153-166 (2009) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2009.019
This article summarises the current knowledge of the rabbit coccidia and the disease they cause. Various aspects, such as life cycles, localisation in the host, pathology and pathogenicity, immunity and control, are discussed.
Toxoplasma gondii-altered host behaviour: clues as to mechanism of action
Joanne P. Webster, Glenn A. McConkey
Folia Parasitologica 57[2] 95-104 (2010) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2010.012
A convincing body of evidence now exists, from both human and animal studies, and encompassing epidemiological to experimental, to indicate that the common protozoan Toxoplasma gondii can cause specific behavioural changes in its host. Such behavioural alterations are likely to be the product of strong selective pressures for the parasite to enhance transmission from its intermediate host reservoir, primarily rodent, to its feline definitive host, wherein sexual reproduction can occur and the parasite's life cycle completed. Here we consider what the available data to date may reveal about the potential mechanisms involved, the future research...
An annotated list of parasites (Isopoda, Copepoda, Monogenea, Digenea, Cestoda and Nematoda) collected in groupers (Serranidae, Epinephelinae) in New Caledonia emphasizes parasite biodiversity in coral reef fish
Jean-Lou Justine, Ian Beveridge, Geoffrey A. Boxshall, Rod A. Bray, František Moravec, Jean-Paul Trilles, Ian D. Whittington
Folia Parasitologica 57[4] 237-262 (2010) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2010.032
Over a 7-year period, parasites have been collected from 28 species of groupers (Serranidae, Epinephelinae) in the waters off New Caledonia. Host-parasite and parasite-host lists are provided, with a total of 337 host-parasite combinations, including 146 parasite identifications at the species level. Results are included for isopods (5 species), copepods (19), monogeneans (56), digeneans (28), cestodes (12), and nematodes (12). When results are restricted to those 14 fish species for which more than five specimens were examined and to parasites identified at the species level, 109 host-parasite combinations were recorded, with 63 different species,...
Classification of the Acanthocephala
Omar M. Amin
Folia Parasitologica 60[4] 273-305 (2013) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2013.031
Abstract: In 1985, Amin presented a new system for the classification of the Acanthocephala in Crompton and Nickol's (1985) book 'Biology of the Acanthocephala' and recognized the concepts of Meyer (1931, 1932, 1933) and Van Cleave (1936, 1941, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1951, 1952). This system became the standard for the taxonomy of this group and remains so to date. Many changes have taken place and many new genera and species, as well as higher taxa, have been described since. An updated version of the 1985 scheme incorporating new concepts in molecular taxonomy, gene sequencing and phylogenetic studies is presented. The hierarchy has undergone a total...
Life cycle and settlement of an Australian isolate of Ichthyophthirius multifiliis Fouquet, 1876 from rainbow trout
James M. Forwood, James O. Harris, Matt Landos, Marty R. Deveney
Folia Parasitologica 62[1] 13 (2015) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2015.013
Ichthyophthirius multifiliis Fouquet, 1876, a ciliate parasite, is a cosmopolitan and problematic parasite of cultured freshwater fish. Each geographical isolate of I. multifiliis has variations in life cycle timing under different abiotic water conditions, such as temperature and salinity. We assessed the effects of salinity and temperature on the development and the preferred settlement site of a temperate Australian isolate of I. multifiliis. The time until theront release was significantly different between each temperature; development time was longest at 5 °C with a mean time of 189 h and decreased to a mean time of 11.7 h at 30...
High density of fox and cat faeces in kitchen gardens and resulting rodent exposure to Echinococcus multilocularis and Toxoplasma gondii
Matthieu Bastien, Amélie Vaniscotte, Benoit Combes, Gérald Umhang, Estelle Germain, Valentin Gouley, Alice Pierlet, Thomas Quintaine, Marie-Amélie Forin-Wiart, Isabelle Villena, Dominique Aubert, Franck Boué, Marie-Lazarine Poulle
Folia Parasitologica 65:002 (2018) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2018.002
The faeces of the red fox, Vulpes vulpes (Linnaeus), and the domestic cat, Felis catus (Linnaeus), can be responsible for spreading eggs of Echinococcus multilocularis Leuckart, 1863 and oocysts of Toxoplasma gondii (Nicolle et Manceaux, 1908) into the environment. The accidental ingestion of these eggs or oocysts, through consumption of raw fruits or vegetables grown in or in contact with contaminated soil, can lead to alveolar echinococcosis (AE) or toxoplasmosis in humans. The present study provides a quantitative assessment of the faecal deposition by foxes and cats in kitchen gardens where fruits and vegetables are...
Description of Acanthocephalus anguillae balkanicus subsp. n. (Acanthocephala: Echinorhynchidae) from Proteus anguinus Laurenti (Amphibia: Proteidae) and the cave ecomorph of Asellus aquaticus (Crustacea: Asellidae) in Slovenia
Omar M. Amin, Richard A. Heckmann, Žiga Fišer, Valerija Zakšek, Holger Herlyn, Rok Kostanjšek
Folia Parasitologica 66:015 (2019) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2019.015
Acanthocephalus balkanicus Batchvarov et Combes, 1974 was incompletely described from the northern crested newt, Triturus cristatus (Laurenti) (Amphibia: Salamandridae), a possible synonym of the Balkan crested newt, Triturus ivanbureschi Arntzen et Wielstra, from a pond in village of Pesnopoy, southern Bulgaria. We provide a full description of adult males and females of the same taxon from the olm, Proteus anguinus Laurenti (Amphibia: Proteidae), the only exclusively aquatic cave-dwelling vertebrate in Europe, captured in Postojna-Planina Cave System in Slovenia. Cystacanths were also collected from the cave ecomorph of Asellus...
Comparative exploration of the morphological plasticity of Trichodina centrostrigeata (Peritrichia: Mobilida), ectoparasite from the gills of two tilapia species (Oreochromis niloticus and O. mossambicus) in a global context
Alma Gabriela Islas-Ortega, Paula S. Marcotegui, Linda Basson, Gerhard P. de Jager, Rogelio Aguilar-Aguilar
Folia Parasitologica 69:022 (2022) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2022.022
Trichodina centrostrigeata Basson, Van As et Paperna, 1983 from Oreochromis mossambicus (Peters) and O. niloticus (Linnaeus) from different host populations from Argentina, Mexico and South Africa was reviewed. Although T. centrostrigeata has a distinct denticle structure that makes morphological taxonomic inferences uncomplicated, variation of the denticles within and among individuals and populations were still observed. While traditional taxonomy of mobilines is heavily reliant on morphometrics, and recently even more so on molecular analysis, this paper proposes the use of geometric morphometry, specifically elliptical...
Manual for the study of tapeworms (Cestoda) parasitic in ray-finned fish, amphibians and reptiles
Lenta Chervy
Folia Parasitologica 71:001 (2024) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2024.001
Based on long-term and often frustrating experiences with the poor quality of tapeworms (Cestoda) collected throughout the world for taxonomic and phylogenetic studies, and considering the increasing obstacles to obtaining new material, a simple, easy-to-use and illustrated methodological guide (manual) is provided. It focusses mainly on key steps in examining hosts, collecting cestodes from poikilothermous vertebrates except elasmobranchs, i.e., from ray-finned fish (Actinopterygii), amphibians and 'reptiles' (a paraphyletic group comprising all sauropsids except birds), and fixing them for subsequent morphological and molecular study. It is proposed...
Special Issue: The linking of toxoplasmosis and schizophrenia
Edwin Fuller Torrey
Folia Parasitologica 71:016 (2024) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2024.016
Toxoplasmosis is caused by Toxoplasma gondii (Nicolle et Manceaux, 1908), a coccidian protist (Apicomplexa). It has a strong predilection for infecting the central nervous system. Researchers have therefore investigated its association with several neurological and psychiatric disorders, including Alzheimer's disease, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism, bipolar disorder, cerebral palsy, depression, Guillain-Barre syndrome, multiple sclerosis, obsessive compulsive disorder, Parkinson's disease, personality disorders, and schizophrenia. Among these disorders the strongest evidence for a role of T. gondii exists for psychosis...
Special Issue: Toxoplasma gondii, suicidal behaviour and suicide risk factors in US Veterans enrolled in mental health treatment
Teodor T. Postolache, Erica Duncan, Poyu Yen, Eileen Potocki, Meghan Barnhart, Amanda Federline, Nicholas Massa, Aline Dagdag, Joshua Joseph, Abhishek Wadhawan, Colt D. Capan, Cameron Forton, Christopher A. Lowry, Heidi K. Ortmeyer, Lisa A. Brenner
Folia Parasitologica 72:002 (2025) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2025.002
Markers of chronic infection Toxoplasma gondii (Nicolle et Manceaux, 1908) have been associated with suicidal self-directed violence (SSDV). We present the results of the first study relating T. gondii IgG serology with suicide attempts and suicidal ideation in United States Veterans, known to have higher suicide rates than members of the general population. We also related T. gondii serology to SSDV risk factors, including valid and reliable measures of trait impulsivity, aggression, self-reported depression, and sleep disturbance. We recruited 407 Veterans enrolled at three Veterans Affairs Medical Centers with mean (S.D.)...
Special Issue: Thirty years of studying latent toxoplasmosis: behavioural, physiological, and health insights
Jaroslav Flegr
Folia Parasitologica 72:005 (2025) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2025.005
In this article, I recount the journey of discovering the effects of latent toxoplasmosis on human psychology, behaviour, morphology, and health as I observed it from the closest perspective over the past 30+ years, during which our laboratory has been intensely focused on this research. I trace how we moved from the initial observations of differences between infected and uninfected individuals in certain personality traits to the systematic study of similar differences in behaviour, both in the laboratory and in everyday life, as well as in physiological and even morphological traits. This eventually led us to investigate the causal relationships...
Revision of Cryptogonimus Osborn, 1903 and Caecincola Marshall et Gilbert, 1905 (Digenea: Cryptogonimidae), supplemental description of Cryptogonimus chili Osborn, 1903, and description of a new species of Caecincola infecting basses (Centrarchiformes: Centrarchidae) in Tennessee and Alabama rivers
Triet N. Truong, Stephen S. Curran, Brandon L. Simcox, Alex P. Bybel, Stephen A. Bullard
Folia Parasitologica 72:006 (2025) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2025.006
We provide a supplemental description of the type species for Cryptogonimus Osborn, 1903 (Digenea: Cryptogonimidae), Cryptogonimus chili Osborn, 1903, based on newly-collected, heat-killed, formalin-fixed specimens infecting rock bass, Ambloplites rupestris (Rafinesque), and smallmouth bass, Micropterus dolomieu Lacepède (both Centrarchiformes: Centrarchidae), from the Duck River, Tennessee (USA). We emend Cryptogonimus to include features observed in the present specimens of its type species and in the descriptions of its congeners: a broad (wider than long) oral sucker, an intestine that bifurcates in the posterior...
Rhadinorhynchus villalobosi sp. n. (Acanthocephala: Rhadinorhynchidae) from the gafftopsail pompano Trachinotus rhodopus (Carangiformes: Carangidae) from the Pacific coast in Mexico
Gisela Martínez-Flores, Luis García-Prieto, Alejandro Oceguera-Figueroa
Folia Parasitologica 72:007 (2025) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2025.007
A new species of Acanthocephala is described based on specimens found parasitising the intestine of the gafftopsail pompano Trachinotus rhodopus Gill in the State of Oaxaca, off the Pacific coast of Mexico. Rhadinorhynchus villalobosi sp. n. differs from the other 25 species of the genus known from the Pacific Ocean by a combination of morphological traits, such as the fewer number of rows of hooks along the proboscis, the distribution of spines of the trunk forming two fields, the position of genital pore, subterminal in both sexes, a shorter neck and cement glands, among others. The phylogenetic analyses based on sequences of the nuclear...
Global hotspots and academic trends of vector-borne diseases in the order Diptera (Arthropoda: Insecta): a bibliometric visualisation
Yijia Xu, Yuni Wang, Mingyu Li, Yajun Lu
Folia Parasitologica 72:010 (2025) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2025.010
Blood-sucking arthropods belonging to the order Diptera, encompassing mosquitoes, sandflies, midges, blackflies, horseflies and tsetseflies serve as vectors for a myriad of pathogens, inflicting substantial harm on both human and animal health globally. The analysis and visualisation of global hotspots and trends pertaining to vector-borne diseases, stemming from these six categories of arthropods, constituted a reliable reference for further delving into the research on Diptera insect vectors. To achieve this, we mined literature information from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC), encompassing all publications related to these six arthropod...
Parasite communities of the gafftopsail pompano Trachinotus rhodopus (Carangiformes: Carangidae): examining the parasite species richness and diversity over time
Shirley S. Salas-Villalobos, Juan Violante-González, Edgar F. Mendoza-Franco, Scott Monks, Agustín A. Rojas-Herrera, Pedro Flores-Rodríguez, José Luis Rosas-Acevedo, Yesenia Gallegos-Navarro, Apolinar Santamaria-Miranda
Folia Parasitologica 72:012 (2025) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2025.012
In total 949 specimens of Trachinotus rhodopus (Gill) were collected over a 11-year period (from June 2013 to February 2024) from Acapulco Bay, Mexico. Parasite communities in T. rhodopus were quantified and analysed to explore two hypotheses related to their parasite species richness and diversity associated with the bentho-demersal and pelagic habits, and effects of the climatic fluctuations. Thirty-two metazoan parasite taxa/species were identified: three species of 'Monogenea', 14 Digenea, one Aspidogastrea, one Acanthocephala, two Cestoda, three Nematoda and eight Crustacea. The digeneans and copepods were the best represented groups....
Special Issue: Re-assessing host manipulation in Toxoplasma: the underexplored role of sexual transmission - evidence, mechanisms, implications
Ashkan Latifi, Jaroslav Flegr, Šárka Kaňková
Folia Parasitologica 72:015 (2025) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2025.015
Latent infection with Toxoplasma gondii (Nicolle et Manceaux, 1908) has been repeatedly correlated with behavioural and physiological changes in both humans and animals. While classically regarded as a parasite transmitted via ingestion or vertical (transplacental) transmission, accumulating evidence suggests that sexual transmission may also contribute to its epidemiology. This review explores the hypothesis that some behavioural effects of toxoplasmosis - especially those related to attraction, sexual activity, and mate choice - may have evolved to facilitate sexual transmission of the parasite. We summarise findings from animal models and...
Special Issue: Who makes the decisions? Uncovering the evolutionary implications and clinical applications of Toxoplasma gondii's Fatal Feline Attraction
Joanne P. Webster
Folia Parasitologica 72:016 (2025) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2025.016
Here I recount my research journey on the coccidian protist Toxoplasma gondii (Nicolle et Manceaux, 1908), a ubiquitous parasite capable of infecting all warm-blooded animals as intermediate or secondary host, but with only members of the Felidae as its definitive host. I describe my initial studies into its epidemiology and persistence within the UK, and how this led on to a series of biologically and ethically appropriate studies into T. gondii's apparent specific manipulation of its rat intermediate host to facilitate transmission to its feline definitive host. I then describe how this prompted searches into the potential mechanisms...
Species richness and similarity of parasite communities in ten species of carangid fish (Carangiformes) from the Mexican Southern Pacific
Shirley S. Salas-Villalobos, Juan Violante-González, Edgar F. Mendoza-Franco, Yesenia Gallegos-Navarro, Erick Rodríguez-Ibarra, Carlos Valencia-Cayetano, Jonatan Carbajal-Violante, Sergio García-Ibáñez
Folia Parasitologica 72:017 (2025) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2025.017
Species richness and similarity in metazoan parasite communities of fish can be influenced by several biotic (age, body size, vagility, social and feeding behaviour, among others), and local abiotic factors (temperature, salinity, climatic events, etc.). The parasite communities of ten species of the family Carangidae from Acapulco Bay, Mexico, were quantified and analysed between May 2014 and August 2024. A total of 1,148 fish specimens were examined and 78 parasite species were identified (44 endoparasites and 34 species of ectoparasites). At the component community level, species richness ranged from 11 in Euprepocaranx dorsalis (Gill)...
Description of a new Neotropical species of Mathevotaenia (Cestoda: Anoplocephalidae), a parasite of the Virginia opossum Didelphis virginiana
Diana Coronado-Morones, Jesús Alonso Panti-May, Gerardo Torres-Carrera, Luis García-Prieto
Folia Parasitologica 72:023 (2025) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2025.023
The cestodes of the genus Mathevotaenia Akhumyan, 1946, are parasites of mammals, although some species also occur in reptiles. The genus comprises 61 species distributed worldwide, 25 of which occur in the American continent. During a collection of mammals in Yucatán, Mexico, six specimens of a cestode belonging to Mathevotaenia were found in the Virginia opossum Didelphis virginiana Kerr. The aim of this study is to morphologically describe these specimens, which represent a new species, and to evaluate their phylogenetic position within the Anoplocephalidae, based on cox1, 28S rDNA and ITS sequences. The new species is...
Special Issue: Toxoplasma gondii and suicidal behaviour: discovery, cross-diagnostic confirmation and pathway exploration
Teodor T. Postolache
Folia Parasitologica 72:025 (2025) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2025.025
Our team's discovery of the link between chronic "latent" infection with Toxoplasma gondii (Nicolle et Manceaux, 1908) and suicidal behaviour, and our subsequent cross-diagnostic confirmatory work and mechanistic extensions, evolved from our neuroimmunology studies on affective and behavioural dysregulation exacerbated by allergic sensitisation and allergen exposure. Another root was studying behavioural changes and cytokine gene expression in the brain of rodents sensitised and exposed to aeroallergens. We "piggy-backed" our project funded to study coupling between aeroallergen sensitisation and exposure in patients with recurrent mood...
Three decades of research on molecular genetic characteristics of Echinococcus spp.: a bibliometric study
Aidana Tautanova, Vladimir Kiyan, Marat Dusmagambetov, Tanzilya Almysheva, Aigul Dusmagambetova
Folia Parasitologica 73:001 (2026) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2026.001
Research on the molecular genetics of Echinococcus has advanced significantly owing to its relevance in understanding genetic variation, host-parasite interactions, and the transmission of Echinococcus species. A bibliometric analysis was performed using RStudio (Bibliometrix) and VOSviewer to evaluate molecular genetic research on Echinococcus spp. published between 1985 and 2025. Data were extracted from Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, Europe PMC, and ProQuest. The analysis revealed a steady rise in publications on Echinococcus molecular genetics, accelerating from the early 2000s and peaking around 2017, with a slight...
Lack of evidence for the presence of plastids in the evolutionary history of kinetoplastid protists
Anzhelika Butenko, Julius Lukeš
Folia Parasitologica 73:005 (2026) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2026.005
The discovery of multiple metabolic enzymes encoded by genes of apparent plant or cyanobacterial origin in trypanosomatids led to the influential hypothesis that the common ancestor of Euglenozoa harboured a plastid that was subsequently lost in kinetoplastids. Here, we critically re-evaluate this hypothesis using an expanded, phylogenetically balanced dataset comprising 299 eukaryotic and 102 bacterial species. We reassess the evolutionary histories of 16 genes encoding proteins previously interpreted as evidence for an ancestral euglenozoan plastid using state-of-the-art maximum-likelihood and Bayesian phylogenetic approaches, supplemented by topology...
Special Issue: Does latent Toxoplasma infection mimic the immune profile of schizophrenia? Sex-specific cytokine and brain-marker alterations suggest partial overlap
Jaroslav Flegr, Jana Ullmann, Filip Španiel, Jan Toman, Martin Hůla, Blanka Šebánková, Jana Petrusová, Petr Novotný, Josef Včelák, Šárka Kaňková
Folia Parasitologica 73:006 (2026) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2026.006
Schizophrenia often features low-grade neuroinflammation. Because latent toxoplasmosis (LT) is more prevalent among individuals with schizophrenia, we tested whether LT yields a biomarker pattern resembling that reported in schizophrenia. We quantified 15 cytokines and 15 blood markers of brain injury in 65 LT-positive individuals and 103 matched LT-negative controls using multiplex immunoassays. Multivariate effects of infection, age, sex, and their interaction were assessed by MANCOVA and PERMANOVA. Effects on individual biomarkers were tested by partial Kendall correlation (controlling for age and sex). Differences in the internal correlation structure...
Host switching via rare sex: Oncorhynchus mykiss as a vector in fusion of three Gyrodactylus salaris genomes into a sexual-clonal population on a landlocked Salmo salar (Monogenea, Platyhelminthes)
Jaakko Lumme, Jussi Kuusela, Marek Ziętara, Evgeny Ieshko, Dariya Lebedeva, Julia Barskaya
Folia Parasitologica 73:007 (2026) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2026.007
The monogenean ectoparasite Gyrodactylus salaris Malmberg, 1957 was detected in 2001 on juveniles of landlocked Salmo salar Linnaeus in three rivers draining to Lake Kuitozero in the White Sea basin. The ancestry of the colony was studied by internal transcribed spacers of the nuclear ribosomal operon (ITS), mitochondrial COI gene and by 12 microsatellite markers. The maternal ancestor was a frozen heterozygotic and heteroplasmic diploid clone RBT marked by a ITS-1068R, spread by rainbow trout and observed in Denmark, Norway, Finland and Russia. The clone combined genomes from two divergent matrilines, probably from...
A new genus and three new species of tapeworms (Cestoda: Onchoproteocephalidea) in Erythrolamprus snakes (Colubridae: Dipsadinae) in South America
Alain de Chambrier, Tomáš Scholz
Folia Parasitologica 73:008 (2026) | DOI: 10.14411/fp.2026.008
The species diversity of reptile parasites in the New World, including South America, remains poorly understood, and this also applies to tapeworms (Cestoda: Onchoproteocephalidea). Only 17 species of the non-monophyletic genus Ophiotaenia La Rue, 1911 have been recorded in reptiles in the Neotropical Region. In this paper, three new species are described from dipsadine snakes of the genus Erythrolamprus Boie (Colubridae) in Brazil and Paraguay, and a new genus, Penetrocestus, is proposed to accommodate these tapeworms that penetrate the intestinal wall of their hosts. The new genus differs from other proteocephalids parasitising...