Objective Toxoplasma gondii is a worldwide protozoan parasite that could infect virtually all warm-blooded animals, including humans. Our study aimed to investigate the prevalence of T. gondii infection in college students at Anhui province, China and to assess risk factors for T. gondii infection in college students. Moreover, growing studies demonstrated the association between T. gondii infection and host behavioral changes. We also studied the linkage between T. gondii and physical education (PE) scores of college students. Methods A total of 2704 serum samples of medical school students attending physical education lessons were collected from September 2017 to September 2019 and evaluated for T. gondii IgG antibodies using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Questionnaires and statistical analysis were used to determine the risk factors for T. gondii infection. We also analysed PE scores of T. gondii -infected students and T. gondii-uninfected students. Results The overall seroprevalence of T. gondii was 11.5%. The main risk factors related to T. gondii infection in college students were cat in the household and gardening or agriculture activity. Furthermore, in the basketball group and the soccer group, scores of T. gondii seropositive students were significantly higher than those of seronegative students, while in other sports there was no difference between scores of T. gondii-infected students and T. gondii uninfected students. Conclusion This is the first report of T. gondii seroprevalence in college students in Anhui province, China.

Toxoplasma gondii is a worldwide food-borne parasite that can infect almost all warm-blooded animals, including humans. To date, there are no effective drugs to prevent or eradicate T. gondii infection. Recent studies have shown that probiotics could influence the relationship between the microbiota and parasites in the host. Koumiss has been used to treat many diseases based on its probiotic diversity. Therefore, we explored the effect of koumiss on T. gondii infection via its effect on the host intestinal flora. BALB/c mice were infected with T. gondii and treated with PBS, koumiss and mares’ milk. Brain cysts were counted, and long-term changes in the microbiota and the effect of koumiss on gut flora were investigated with high-throughput sequencing technology. The results suggested that koumiss treatment significantly decreased the cyst counts in the brain (P < 0.05). Moreover, T. gondii infection changed the microbiota composition, and koumiss treatment increased the relative abundance of Lachnospiraceae and Akkermansia muciniphila, which were associated with preventing T. gondii infection. Moreover, koumiss could inhibit or ameliorate T. gondii infection by increasing the abundance of certain bacteria that control unique metabolic pathways. The study not only established a close interaction among the host, intracellular pathogens and intestinal flora but also provided a novel focus for drug development to prevent and eradicate T. gondii infection.

Objective Toxoplasma gondii is a worldwide protozoan parasite that could infect virtually all warm-blooded animals, including humans. Our study aimed to investigate the prevalence of T. gondii infection in college students at Anhui province, China. Moreover, growing studies demonstrated the association between T. gondii infection and host behavioral changes. We also studied the linkage between T. gondii and scores of college students. Methods 2704 serum samples of medical school students attending physical education lessons were collected from September 2017 to September 2019 and evaluated for T. gondii IgG antibodies using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). We also analysed PE scores of T. gondii infected students and T. gondii uninfected students. Results The overall seroprevalence of T. gondii was 11.5%. The main risk factors related to T. gondii infections were cat in the household and gardening or agriculture activity. Furthermore, in basketball group and football group, scores of T. gondii seropositive students were significantly higher than that of seronegative students , while in other sports there is no difference between scores of T. gondii infected students and T. gondii uninfected students. Conclusion This is the first report of T. gondii seroprevalence in college students in Anhui province, China.