Episode
1770: "When a Parasite Rewires Behavior to Spread Itself"
- Podcast
- Interesting Things with JC
- Published
- Sep 9, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 266
- Processing state
not_requested
Actions
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Summary
Interesting Things with JC #1770: "When a Parasite Rewires Behavior to Spread Itself" – Infected Texas field crickets were sterile or producing barely moving sperm, but they kept mating, and infected males courted females sooner than healthy males. The virus was disrupting the immune signals that normally slow courtship during illness while still spreading through sexual contact.