NoCope
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This study suggests that people infected with the Toxoplasma parasite, which is a common infection often coming from cats, have higher levels of testosterone, a hormone that influences behavior and personality, compared to those not infected.
Research shows that people and animals infected with the Toxoplasma parasite have higher levels of testosterone, which can affect physical appearance and reproductive outcomes. Infected men tend to be taller, have more muscle, and exhibit more dominant facial features compared to those not infected. Additionally, both infected men and women show a lower ratio between the lengths of the second and fourth digits on their left hand and are more likely to have sons than daughters. These findings support the theory that infections can alter hormone levels, potentially shifting the sex ratio towards more male offspring. This shift could be due to the parasite's ability to change the body's hormone balance or by making male embryos more likely to survive through mechanisms that suppress the immune system.
When they compared the average testosterone levels between those infected with Toxoplasma and those not infected, they found a significant difference, with infected individuals having higher levels (with statistical significance being P=0.02 for men and P=0.04 for women, indicating the difference wasn't due to chance). They also found a significant link between the strength of the antibody response (measured by ELISA) and testosterone levels in infected people, which suggests that as the body's response to the parasite increases, so does testosterone. However, when they looked if the amount of antibodies directly related to testosterone levels, they didn't find a clear association, meaning having more antibodies doesn't necessarily mean you'll have higher testosterone.
TLDR - if you have a cat, eat his shit
Group | Mean OD ± SD | Mean concentration of testosterone (ng/ml) ± SD |
---|---|---|
Infected men | 1.05 ± 0.53 | 5.6 ± 1.99 |
Infected women | 0.94 ± 0.37 | 0.41 ± 0.22 |
Non-infected men (sero-negative) | 0.14 ± 0.08 | 4.56 ± 1.96 |
Non-infected women (sero-negative) | 0.15 ± 0.08 | 0.31 ± 0.17 |
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