Toxoplasma gondii is a protozoan parasite1 that can cause foodborne disease. A publication by Scallan et al.2 in 2011 estimated that 86,686 human foodborne toxoplasmosis cases, including 327 deaths, occur annually in the US.
Key laboratories studying various aspects of foodborne toxoplasmosis in the US and Canada include:
Animal Parasitic Diseases Laboratory, United States Department of Agriculture, USA
Boothroyd Laboratory, Stanford University, USA
Boyle Laboratory, University of Pittsburgh, USA
Denkers Laboratory, Cornell University, USA
Gubbels Lab, Boston College, USA
Knoll Laboratory, University of Wisconsin at Madison, USA
Saeij Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA
Sapolsky Laboratory, Stanford University, USA
Sibley Laboratory, Washington University School of Medicine, USA
Key laboratories studying various aspects of foodborne toxoplasmosis in Europe include:
Laboratory for Toxoplasmosis, Pasteur Institute of Brussels, Scientific Institute for Public Health, Belgium
Laboratory for Zoonoses and Environmental Microbiology, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, The Netherlands
Luis Miguel Martins Lucas Cardoso, University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Vila Real, Portugal3
Key laboratories studying various aspects of foodborne toxoplasmosis in South and Latin America include:
Laboratorio de Parasitología Molecular, Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas-Instituto Tecnologico Chascomús, Argentina
Thomaz-Soccol Laboratory, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Brazil
Key laboratories studying various aspects of foodborne toxoplasmosis in Asia and Australia include:
State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Etiological Biology, Lanzhou Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, China
Additional resources on Toxoplasma gondii:
A number of key sources on Toxoplasma gondii and toxoplasmosis are available.
References
1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxoplasma_gondii
2Scallan et al. 2011.Emerging Infectious Diseases 17:7-15 PMID:21192848
3A. P. Lopes, J. P. Dubey, O. Moutinho, M. J. Gargaté, A. Vilares, M. Rodrigues and L. Cardoso, 2011. Seroepidemiology of Toxoplasma gondii infection in women from the North of Portugal in their childbearing years. Epidemiology and Infection. http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=8365082