Munaf Mohsin Naji Al-Sharifi

Background: Toxoplasma gondii is an obligate intracellular protozoan parasite that infects various organs, including the liver, and infects a wide variety of warm-blooded animals, including an estimated one-third of the global human population. Although infection is often asymptomatic in immunocompetent individuals, chronic toxoplasmosis may cause subclinical hepatic and metabolic alterations. This study aimed to investigate the impact of T. gondii on the lipid profile and liver function in women. Methods: A Comparative Study was conducted with 88 females aged 18-50 years in Al Najaf province. Anti-Toxoplasma IgG antibodies were detected using a VIDAS, where the liver enzymes, including ALP, AST, and ALT, as well as the lipid profiles, including TC, TG, HDL, VLDL, and LDL, were measured using biochemical methods. Statistical analysis was performed using Student's t-test. Results: The current study showed that the concentrations of ALT in patients with Toxoplasmosis significantly increased (P<0.05) (31.88 ± 3.49 U/L) compared to the control group (20.85 ± 3.02 U/L). Furthermore, the concentrations of ALP and AST in patients with Toxoplasmosis non-significantly increased (P>0.05) (95.27 ± 17.77 U/L) and (29.37 ± 3.17 U/L), respectively, compared to the control group (85.13 ± 6.95 U/L) (27.17 ± 3.97 U/L), respectively. Where the concentrations of TG, TC, HDL, VLDL, and LDL in patients with Toxoplasmosis were significantly increased (P<0.05) (231.6 ± 3.676 mg/dL), (156.1 ± 8.896 mg/dL), (41.17 ± 1.55 mg/dL), (46.31 ± 8.92 mg/dL), and (69.75 ± 8.92 mg/dL) respectively compared to the control group (97.83 ± 11.46 mg/dL), (83.15 ± 4.197 mg/dL), 29.82 ± 0.319 mg/dL, (19.57 ± 2.29 mg/dL), and (33.77 ± 4.32 mg/dL) respectively. Conclusion: The chronic infection with T. gondii in women was linked with slight hepatic involvement and important disturbances in lipid metabolism. These results imply that toxoplasmosis may play an important role in liver dysfunction and dyslipidemia, which means the need for routine biochemical monitoring in individuals who are infected

Background: The information infections with protozoa and helminths in both genders and across all age groups, ranging from one year to forty-five years. Objectives: This study aimed to determine the prevalence of parasite infection in Al-Najaf al-Ashraf Governorate, Iraq. Methodology: The study was conducted from January to June of 2024. A total of 498 stool, urine, and blood samples obtained from cases, ranging in age from one year to over 45 years and were scored among patients visiting the German Hospital's Parasitology and Helminthology Unit's laboratories. Results: of the samples 398 (80%) were positive and 100 samples (20%) were negative. According to our study, the prevalence of infection with harmful parasites (Amoebiasis, Giardiasis, Trichomoniasis, Toxoplasmosis, Schistosomiasis, and Hymenolepiasis) was 242 (60.8%), 84 (21.1%), 46 (11.6%), 14 (3.5%), 6 (1.5%), and 6 (1.5%), in accordingly. Infection rates for males and females were 38.2% and 61.8%, respectively, with a larger percentage of infections in the female gender. Of the people in the (1–14 year) age range, 94 (23.6%) had amoebiasis which was the highest infection rate. In all cases, there were considerable disparities between the reported single infection and doubled infections. The biggest ratio of infection was 390 (78.3%) in cases with Amoebiasis & Trichomoniasis and 2 (0.4%) in cases with Giardiasis and Hymenolepiasis. Conclusion: Infections with parasites can affect people of any gender, however females seem to be more vulnerable than men. Children between the ages of 1 and 14 were shown to be more susceptible to E. histolytica infection.