Parasite Hijacks Chimps’ Brains And Makes Them More Likely To Be Killed By A Leopard

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The parasite makes chimps attracted to leopard urine, increasing their chance of being eaten by the cats. Kjersti Joergensen/Shutterstock

It might sound like the plot of a Hollywood film, but there is a parasite that invades the brain of its host and alters their behavior in an attempt to get them killed. The parasite, known as Toxoplasma gondii, is actually much more common than you might think, with over half of humans thought to be infected, though thankfully for most people it is harmless.