Disease
Toxoplasmosis
Cat / undercooked-meat protozoal infection
TOK-so-plaz-MOH-sis
High-yield clue
Ring-enhancing brain lesions in AIDS and a congenital triad of chorioretinitis, hydrocephalus, and intracranial calcifications are the classic toxoplasmosis clues.
Overview
A protozoal infection by Toxoplasma gondii, studied for latent tissue cysts, reactivation during immunosuppression, and congenital transmission across the placenta.
Classification
- Protozoal zoonosis syndrome
- Toxoplasma gondii infection
- Foodborne and cat-feces exposure
- Latent bradyzoite tissue cysts
Lab & identification clues
- Toxoplasma IgG/IgM serology concept
- Ring-enhancing CNS lesions on imaging vocabulary
- Bradyzoite tissue cyst vocabulary
Associations
- Transmission: cat-feces oocysts, undercooked meat, congenital
- Usually asymptomatic or mono-like in immunocompetent hosts
- Reactivation encephalitis when CD4 is low (AIDS)
- Congenital triad vocabulary
Commonly confused with
- CNS lymphoma
- CMV (congenital TORCH)
- Cryptococcal meningitis
Your notes
Original student-study summary. Sources checked: OpenStax Microbiology 2e, NCBI Bookshelf Medical Microbiology, and CDC topic pages where applicable; reviewed 2026-06. Educational only; no diagnosis, treatment, dosing, or specimen-handling guidance.