The aim of this study was to determine whether repeated ingestion of
mycotoxin T-2 (T2) or
aflatoxin B1 (AFL) at low doses could contribute to the activation of
toxoplasmosis in experimentally infected mice. Mice were divided into two groups: Control (C) and Infected (I). The
cyst-forming Beverley strain of Toxoplasma gondii was used to produce the
infection one month before treatment with
mycotoxins.
Mycotoxins were given intragastrically for a 50-day period. The average
weight gain was reduced in the groups treated with
mycotoxins. Mice developed specific
IgG to T. gondii. Histopathological studies showed severe
encephalitis in all groups infected. The number of unruptured and ruptured
cysts was established and the severity of the lesions was evaluated, the groups treated with
mycotoxins being the most severely affected. Immunohistochemical studies of the brain showed free
antigen in tissues surrounding ruptured
cysts. It is suggested that low and repeated doses of
mycotoxins, necessary to produce a subclinical intoxication, precipitate Toxoplasma
cyst rupture and consequently the activation of chronic
toxoplasmosis.