Natures wonders: Cats control mice with urine (Introduction)

by David Turell , Monday, July 06, 2015, 22:27 (3426 days ago) @ David Turell

Toxoplasma Gondi is a parasite carried by rodents that can only reproduce in a cat's gut. The parasite causes rodents to lose their fear of cats:
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> http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/03/150318153918.htm
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> "Rodents infected with a common parasite lose their fear of cats, resulting in easy meals for the felines. Now IU School of Medicine researchers have identified a new way the parasite may modify brain cells, possibly helping explain changes in the behavior of mice -- and humans."-Toxoplasma are dangerous to humans during human pregnancy, but not oterwise.-
And now this: The cats can affect mouse behaviour in the way that cat urine will change the way baby mice react to cats:-http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-33380669-"Researchers found that when very young mice were exposed to a chemical in cat urine, they were less likely to avoid the scent of cats later in life. -"This new study revealed that baby mice exposed to the compound during a "critical period" in their development would, as adults, react quite differently to their arch enemy's smell.-"The team exposed one-month-old mice to the chemical over two weeks. When they were tested later for their reaction, they were much less likely to flee the same scent.-"'Their physical sensitivity [to the chemical] was actually actually much higher," Dr Voznessenskaya explained. "More of their receptors detect the compound and they produce higher levels of stress hormone."-"Despite this though, mice raised around the unmistakable scent of cat pee are less inclined to show signs of fear, or to flee when they sniff it out. -"'You get a higher response, but less behaviour," said Dr Voznessenskaya, "and habituating like this is probably useful for the mice; they can't run away, because they need to live around humans and food. And cats [also] live around humans."-"As for the cats: "They seem to be able to keep the number of mice around that they need," she added."