Cultured ECs respond to infection and iron incubation with increased production of IL-6. Iron, the generation of intracellular hydroxyl radical and NF-kappaB activity are essential in cellular activation, suggesting that reactive oxygen species generated in the Haber-Weiss reaction are essential in invoking an immunological response to infection by ECs.

We report the first detection of Seoul hantavirus (SEOV)-specific antibodies in the wild brown rat population in the Netherlands. SEOV-reactive antibodies were found in three rats out of 16 in a repeated series of tests including immunofluorescence assay, immunoblot, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Focus reduction neutralization test confirmed the presence of SEOV-specific antibodies, and reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) confirmed the presence of hantaviral RNA. This discovery follows the recent findings of SEOV infections in wild and pet brown rats and humans in England, Wales, France, Belgium, and Sweden, indicating an even higher importance of this hantavirus for public health in large areas of Europe.

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We conclude that in addition to direct vascular wall infection by C. pneumoniae and CMV, virus-related development of atherosclerosis might also be initiated by chronic liver infection and subsequent production of inflammatory and procoagulant mediators released in the circulation. This may be another pathophysiological link for the observed relation between infections and the development of atherosclerosis.