الفهرس 
Toxoplasma gondiiOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
Toxoplasmosis is caused by an obligate intracellular protozoan T.
gondii. It has a world-wide epidemiology and is believed to infect about 35 %
of Egypt’s population (Abou Elez et al., 2017). As a zoonosis, humans usually
become infected by horizontal transmission through the consumption of
oocysts or tissue cysts in contaminated meat. However other methods of
transmission including vertical transmission from mother to child also occur
(Cook et al., 2000).
When infection occurs for the first time during pregnancy fetal death or
congenital defects can result. Toxoplasmosis can also be particularly serious in
immunosuppressed individuals, such as those with HIV/AIDS, where it can
result in severe disease (Luft and Remington, 1992). In otherwise healthy
individuals the symptoms of toxoplasmosis are often mild or not apparent
however, clinical symptoms such as ocular disease can occur (Montoya and
Liesenfeld, 2004).
First-line therapy consists of the combination of PYR/SDZ with
leucovorin added to prevent hematologic toxicity. In observational studies and
controlled trials for toxoplasmic encephalitis, this regimen has been found to
have high rates of toxic side effects leading to discontinuation of therapy
(Alday and Doggett, 2017). Moreover, these drugs should not be administered
in the first trimester of pregnancy due to their possible teratogenic properties
(Paquet and Yudin, 2013).
Nitazoxanide is an anti-protozoan agent that has been repurposed. It is
clinically approved to treat diarrhoea caused by Cryptosporidium parvum and
is also used to treat Giardia lamblia. In addition, NTZ has been used to treat
diseases caused by other parasites (including Leishmania) and anaerobic