Background Infectious, autoimmune, and neurodegenerative diseases are associated with
profound psychological disturbances. Studies in animals clearly demonstrate that cytokines
mediate illness-associated behavioral changes. However, the mechanisms underlying the
respective psychological alterations in humans have not been established yet. Therefore,
we investigated the effects of low-dose endotoxemia, a well-established and safe model of
host-defense activation, on emotional, cognitive, immunological, and endocrine parameters …