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Background <p>The infectious hypothesis of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) has gained traction, with <i>Toxoplasma gondii</i> (<i>T.</i> gondii) proposed as a potential risk factor due to its neurotropic properties and ability to alter neurotransmitter systems. However, epidemiological evidence for an association remains inconsistent. This study aimed to investigate the potential association between acute and chronic <i>T. gondii</i> infection and OCD in a region with high toxoplasmosis prevalence.</p> Methods <p>A case-control study was conducted involving 120 OCD patients and 135 healthy controls matched for age and gender in Mazandaran Province, Iran. Serum samples were tested for anti-<i>T. gondii</i> immunoglobulin (Ig) G and IgM antibodies using a commercial ELISA kit. Additionally, buffy coat samples were analyzed for <i>T. gondii</i> DNA using a nested-PCR assay targeting the 529&#xa0;bp RE gene. We employed descriptive statistics to summarize demographic and clinical variables, used the Chi-square test for categorical data, and conducted independent-samples t-tests for continuous variables. Additionally, we applied logistic regression to evaluate the association between <i>T. gondii</i> infection and OCD, adjusting for confounding factors, with significance set at <i>P</i> &lt; 0.05.</p> Results <p>The seroprevalence of anti-<i>T. gondii</i> IgG was not significantly different between OCD patients (55.0%, 66/120) and healthy controls (52.6%, 71/135) (OR: 1.10; 95% CI: 0.67–1.81, <i>P</i> = 0.70). All participants were negative for IgM. Molecular detection by PCR was positive in 5.8% (7/120) of patients and 3.7% (5/135) of controls, a non-significant difference (OR: 1.33; 95% CI: 0.44–4.08, <i>P</i> = 0.62). A significant correlation was observed between increasing age and IgG seropositivity in both groups (<i>P</i> &lt; 0.05).</p> Conclusion <p>This study found no significant association between latent <i>T. gondii</i> infection and OCD. The seroprevalence and molecular evidence do not support a direct causal role for <i>T. gondii</i> in OCD pathogenesis within the studied population. Further longitudinal research is needed to investigate this relationship.</p>

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Seroprevalence and molecular detection of Toxoplasma gondii in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder: a case-control study in northern Iran

  • 期刊论文

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  • 发表日期：

    2026年6月23日

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  • Zakaria Zakariaei,
  • Seyed Hamzeh Hosseini,
  • Reza Alizadeh-Navaei,
  • Majid Malekbala,
  • Mahbobeh Montazeri,
  • Mahdi Fakhar,
  • Homa Talabaki

摘要

Background

The infectious hypothesis of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) has gained traction, with Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) proposed as a potential risk factor due to its neurotropic properties and ability to alter neurotransmitter systems. However, epidemiological evidence for an association remains inconsistent. This study aimed to investigate the potential association between acute and chronic T. gondii infection and OCD in a region with high toxoplasmosis prevalence.

Methods

A case-control study was conducted involving 120 OCD patients and 135 healthy controls matched for age and gender in Mazandaran Province, Iran. Serum samples were tested for anti-T. gondii immunoglobulin (Ig) G and IgM antibodies using a commercial ELISA kit. Additionally, buffy coat samples were analyzed for T. gondii DNA using a nested-PCR assay targeting the 529 bp RE gene. We employed descriptive statistics to summarize demographic and clinical variables, used the Chi-square test for categorical data, and conducted independent-samples t-tests for continuous variables. Additionally, we applied logistic regression to evaluate the association between T. gondii infection and OCD, adjusting for confounding factors, with significance set at P < 0.05.

Results

The seroprevalence of anti-T. gondii IgG was not significantly different between OCD patients (55.0%, 66/120) and healthy controls (52.6%, 71/135) (OR: 1.10; 95% CI: 0.67–1.81, P = 0.70). All participants were negative for IgM. Molecular detection by PCR was positive in 5.8% (7/120) of patients and 3.7% (5/135) of controls, a non-significant difference (OR: 1.33; 95% CI: 0.44–4.08, P = 0.62). A significant correlation was observed between increasing age and IgG seropositivity in both groups (P < 0.05).

Conclusion

This study found no significant association between latent T. gondii infection and OCD. The seroprevalence and molecular evidence do not support a direct causal role for T. gondii in OCD pathogenesis within the studied population. Further longitudinal research is needed to investigate this relationship.