Also: zombie ant fungus, Ophiocordyceps, Toxoplasma, hairworm, Leucochloridium, jewel wasp, emerald cockroach wasp, rabies
Some parasites change how their hosts behave in ways that help the parasite spread, from fungus-infected ants biting leaves before death to crickets that jump into water.
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Libersat reviewed how the jewel wasp uses a venom cocktail to change the behaviour of the cockroach it hunts, and proposed that the venom dampens neurons in the cockroach's head ganglia.
As reported in: Libersat (2003). Wasp uses venom cocktail to manipulate the behavior of its cockroach prey. Journal of Comparative Physiology A: Sensory, Neural, and Behavioral Physiology. doi:10.1007/s00359-003-0432-0
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Hughes and colleagues studied carpenter ants infected by Ophiocordyceps fungi in a Thai rainforest, which leave their canopy nests and bite into leaf veins about 25 cm above the ground before dying, in "graveyard" patches where conditions suit the fungus.
As reported in: Hughes, Andersen, Hywel-Jones et al. (2011). Behavioral mechanisms and morphological symptoms of zombie ants dying from fungal infection. BMC Ecology. doi:10.1186/1472-6785-11-13
Berdoy, Webster and Macdonald found that Toxoplasma gondii infection appears to change rats' perception of cat predation risk, in some cases turning their natural aversion to cat odour into attraction, while leaving other behaviours and general health intact.
As reported in: Berdoy, Webster, Macdonald (2000). Fatal attraction in rats infected with Toxoplasma gondii. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences. doi:10.1098/rspb.2000.1182
Vyas and colleagues found latent Toxoplasma infection in mice and rats converted aversion to cat odours into attraction, a change specific to cat odour rather than a general loss of fear.
As reported in: Vyas, Kim, Giacomini et al. (2007). Behavioral changes induced by Toxoplasma infection of rodents are highly specific to aversion of cat odors. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. doi:10.1073/pnas.0608310104
Wesołowska and Wesołowski found that amber snails carrying pulsating Leucochloridium paradoxum broodsacs in their tentacles moved farther and sat in more exposed, brighter and higher places than uninfected snails, likely making the parasite more visible to birds.
As reported in: Wesołowska, Wesołowski (2013). DoLeucochloridiumsporocysts manipulate the behaviour of their snail hosts?. Journal of Zoology. doi:10.1111/jzo.12094
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Thomas and colleagues found that crickets infected with the hairworm Paragordius tricuspidatus were more likely to jump into water, where the adult worm needs to live, than uninfected crickets.
As reported in: Thomas, Schmidt-Rhaesa, Martin et al. (2002). Do hairworms (Nematomorpha) manipulate the water seeking behaviour of their terrestrial hosts?. Journal of Evolutionary Biology. doi:10.1046/j.1420-9101.2002.00410.x
Hemachudha, Laothamatas and Rupprecht reviewed human rabies as a disease of complex effects on the nervous system that is difficult to diagnose.
As reported in: Hemachudha, Laothamatas, Rupprecht (2002). Human rabies: a disease of complex neuropathogenetic mechanisms and diagnostic challenges. The Lancet Neurology. doi:10.1016/S1474-4422(02)00041-8
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