Toxoplasma

A genus of coccidian parasitic protozoa whose species live inside the cells of birds and mammals, including domestic cats and people. Toxoplasma gondii causes toxoplasmosis — one of the world’s most common parasitic infections. Cats are the definitive hosts, shedding oocysts in their faeces; livestock and humans become intermediate hosts via contaminated feed, water, or undercooked meat carrying tissue cysts. Most infections pass unnoticed, but the parasite persists lifelong in tissues. Food-safety relevance is direct: pork, lamb, and game are significant sources, making thorough cooking the primary defence.