New research is the latest to find evidence of a link between mental illness and infections caused by a group of bacteria commonly found in cats and other animals. The small study found that people diagnosed with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder were more likely to carry Bartonella bacteria into the bloodstream than a control group of patients. However, more research is needed to definitively demonstrate whether these infections can effectively contribute to mental illness.
Acute infections that affect Bartonella bacteria can be especially serious for people in poor health or with a weakened immune system. In most people, it is believed to cause only mild, short-lived illnesses. However, for years, Ed Breitschwerdt and his research colleagues at North Carolina State University have theorized that the health effects of these infections may be deeper in at least some unfortunate people.
His previous work yes highlighted the case of a 14-year-old boy who suddenly developed symptoms similar to schizophrenia and was later found to be carrying a species of Bartonella known to cause cat scratch fever. In this case, the boy’s serious psychiatric problems seemed to clear up once his chronic Bartonella infection was treated with antibiotics. Last year, they published research found that other people with similar neuropsychiatric symptoms often carried these bacteria, along with physical symptoms of an ongoing infection that appeared at the same time, such as different skin lesions.
For this new research, NC State researchers worked with researchers at the University of North Carolina. His study, published last week in vector-borne and zoonotic-borne diseases, 17 people diagnosed with schizophrenia or schizoaffect were compareddisease in a control group of 13 healthy people, in what is known as a case-control study.
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According to the study, both groups underwent a thorough examination. This included the use of more sensitive PCR tests, which look for the presence of pathogen DNA in our body. Bartonellas are a bit strange among bacteria, as they are able to infect and hide inside the cells of our body (red blood cells, in the case of Bartonella). This disappearance trick allows them to survive without being detected by the immune system, and also worsens conventional testing to detect an active infection. Last year, Breitschwerdt and colleagues published research showing that this new testing technique, called digital droplet, or ddPCR, could be more accurate in identifying Bartonella than previous testing.
In 11 of the 17 people with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder, traces of Bartonella DNA could be found, while the same was only true for one of the 13 control patients. Although cats, dogs, and even the fleas they carry may be vectors for Bartonella transmission, the team found no link between an increased likelihood of infection and the ownership of pet information or flea exposure.
The team is careful to describe their work as a pilot study, only to show that it is worth researching more about this link. But, along with his previous research, Breitschwerdt believes that the case for this theory is only getting stronger.
“Our research so far continues to support a role Bartonella species as the cause or co-factor of neuropsychiatric disease, ”Breitschwerdt told Gizmodo in an email.
However, he added: “There is a lot of work that needs to be done to clarify these preliminary results.”
The team is already working on validating ddPCR testing for other groups of bacteria that can invade the bloodstream and may be harder to find with standard testing. With more funding and cooperation with other research centers, they also hope to conduct a larger study comparing people with and without schizophrenia.