Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1
Department of Veterinary Parasitology, Karaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Karaj, Iran
2
Department of Veterinary Parasitology, Babol Branch, Islamic Azad University, Babol, Iran
Abstract
Toxoplasmosis is caused by the intracellular protozoan named, Toxoplasma gondii, in humans and animals. It is able to create parasitic cysts in various tissues during chronic infection, especially brain tissue. Considering the importance of this disease, which actually causes behavioral changes similar to schizophrenia in humans, this study is compared these two diseases based on histopathological analysis. 60 male BALB/c mice were randomly divided into 6 groups (10 mice in each group). Toxoplasmosis group is infected with 10³ tachyzoites of Toxoplasma gondii. The ketamine group is induced schizophrenia by ketamine at a dose of 20 mg/kg for 14 days. Toxoplasmosis and ketamine group is induced schizophrenia after eight weeks of infection with Toxoplasma gondii. Toxoplasmosis and sulfadiazine-trimethoprim group is received sulfadiazine and trimethoprim through oral gavage at doses of 100 and 2 mg/kg, respectively, for 14 days, eight weeks after infection with Toxoplasma gondii. Toxoplasmosis, ketamine, and sulfadiazine-trimethoprim group is infected with Toxoplasma gondii and received ketamine, sulfadiazine, and trimethoprim for 14 days after infection, eight weeks after infection with Toxoplasma gondii. The control group is received normal saline. After euthanizing, the brains were isolated and kept in 10% buffered formalin and transferred to the pathology department. Tissue samples were cut with a thickness of 5 micrometers and stained by hematoxylin and eosin. Histopathological observations of the toxoplasmosis group showed the presence of parasite cysts, neuron apoptosis, gliosis, eosinophilic neurons, perivascular cuffs, and tissue necrosis. Gliosis and neurodegenerative changes were seen in the schizophrenic group. In the treated group, there was a decrease in parasitic cysts and inflammatory cells compared to the infected group (P<0.05). The total number of cells including neurons, astrocytes and oligodendrocytes in the control group has a significant difference (P<0.05) with other groups, while the number of microglia cells between the control group and the toxoplasmosis and toxoplasmosis+ schizophrenia was significant (P<0.05) and between the control and toxoplasmosis treated groups, with schizophrenia was not significant (P>0.05). There was no significant difference between groups 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 for the total number of counted cells, neurons and oligodendrocytes (P>0.05). According to astrocytes, there was a significant difference between the toxoplasmosis-schizophrenic groups and the toxoplasmosis group (P<0.05) and there was no significant difference between groups 2, 3, 5 and 6 and between groups 2, 4, 5 and 6. Also, the neuron size was not significant in any of the groups (P>0.05).
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