One Health Approach To Tackling Toxoplasmosis - Final Report

Toxoplasma gondii is widely regarded as a classic One Health parasite because its impact spans human health, animal health, and the environment. The most recent data from Public Health Scotland shows 47 laboratory-confirmed human cases of toxoplasmosis in 2023, continuing a steady rise over the past decade. Cats (domestic and wild) are the only known definitive hosts of the parasite, capable of shedding millions of oocysts in their faeces that can persist in soil and water for long periods of time, leading to widespread environmental contamination and exposing livestock, wildlife, and humans to infection. The parasite causes significant veterinary disease, including abortion in sheep and goats, whilst also posing a major public health concern through foodborne transmission, environmental exposure, and congenital infection. Fatal infections have also been reported in some marine mammals. As transmission pathways cross ecosystem boundaries, effective control of T. gondii requires a co-ordinated approach integrating public health, veterinary medicine, agriculture, and environmental management. 

The aim of the symposium was to bring together experts and stakeholders from a wide range of disciplines to discuss a One Health approach to tackling toxoplasmosis (Table 1). We wanted to provide a platform to discuss and assess the current epidemiological landscape of toxoplasmosis and to share ideas and innovations for detection and control, whilst also identifying critical knowledge gaps. These discussions will help shape future research priorities and inform effective policy and intervention strategies to reduce the burden of T. gondii across sectors.

Thirty-two invited participants took part in the symposium which was held at the Moredun Research Institute on 20th November 2025. The morning sessions consisted of talks from experts in the field, focusing on public health perspectives, clinical data, veterinary impacts, vaccination, environmental and foodborne transmission, and developments in state-of-the-art research tools to aid future drug and vaccine development. Two of the speakers were able to provide European perspectives, detailing outcomes from a multi-country, collaborative project addressing source attribution of T. gondii, and summarising current parasite genotyping tools available to aid epidemiological studies and source tracking during outbreaks (www.onehealthejp.eu/ projects/foodborne-zoonoses/jrp-toxosources). One of the invited participants was from Brazil, so could also share experiences from South America during the discussions. The afternoon session comprised three breakout discussion groups focusing on identifying knowledge gaps and future steps. 

We conducted a participant survey at the start and end of the day to gather opinions on priority areas for research, barriers to control, engagement with other sectors, and next steps. 

This report summarises the main outcomes from the day and highlights areas for future prioritisation to tackle toxoplasmosis.