Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Photo Illustration by Kelly Caminero / The Daily Beast / Getty When a common parasite infects wolves, it changes their behavior ...

illustration of single-cell parasites floating through the bloodstream alongside blood cells The parasite Toxoplasma gondii hides in up to half of humans, although it rarely causes symptoms. But when ...

The brain is like a medieval castle perched on a cliff, protected on all sides by high walls, making it nearly impenetrable. Its shield is the blood-brain barrier, a layer of tightly connected cells ...

The natural world is always fascinating, with millions of unique species for us to explore and research. But now and again, nature presents us with something so strange that it is, frankly, bizarre.

Mind-altering parasites already linked to neurosis and schizophrenia might also be linked to brain cancer, scientists now find. The germ, found worldwide, is known as Toxoplasma gondii. The parasites ...

A parasite known for its ability to influence the minds of its hosts also hijacks the immune system, a new study finds. In fact, the parasite uses cells that would normally help defeat it as transport ...

When a parasite infects a host, it can manipulate host behavior, which may help spread the parasite to new hosts, or enable the parasite to complete its life cycle. Parasitic worms known as hairworms ...

Deep in the caves of Ireland, scientists have discovered a mind-altering parasite that takes control of spiders, forcing them to abandon their webs before ultimately meeting a gruesome end. This newly ...

For all the different kinds of manipulation in our cultural lexicon — from gaslighting to negging — nothing beats good old-fashioned mind control. Like your worst ex, one master of this power is a ...

When a common parasite infects wolves, it changes their behavior and turns them into risk-taking animals that could help them become leaders of their pack—or get them killed. “We focus so much on ...