Relation Between Direct Detection of Chlamydia pneumoniae DNA in Human Coronary Arteries at Postmortem Examination and Histological Severity (Stary Grading) of Associated Atherosclerotic Plaque

Abstract

This study demonstrates that C pneumoniae can frequently be detected in atheromatous plaques in coronary arteries. However, its distribution did not correlate with severity or extent of disease.

Polymorphism of the 3'-Untranslated Region of Interleukin-12 p40 Gene is not Associated With the Presence or Severity of Coronary Artery Disease

“…32,33 CP infection was demonstrated to accelerate atherosclerosis in a rabbit model; 34 however, the potential contribution of CP infection to CAD remains controversial. Two prospective studies failed to show any association between CP seropositivity and CAD, 19,20 nor did we find any significant association between CP seropositivity and CAD in the present study.…”

Coinfection with Mycoplasma Pneumoniae and Chlamydia Pneumoniae in ruptured plaques associated with acute myocardial infarction

“…The low positivity or absence of infectious agents, mainly of Chlamydia pneumoniae (C. pneumoniae), and the presence of the antigen or heat shock protein of chlamydia has led authors to suggest indirect mechanisms of immunologic activation induced by those agents 11,12 . Most anatomicopathological studies have sought an association between C. pneumoniae and atherosclerotic plaques in general or the intensity of plaque obstruction [13][14][15] . Thrombosed ruptured plaques associated with myocardial infarction have not been analyzed, despite the clinical and serological evidence favoring the pathogenetic participation of C. pneumoniae in acute myocardial infarction.…”

Chlamydophila pneumoniae

“…This issue has been addressed by hundreds of publications since the presence of C. pneumoniae was first identified in coronary atheromas by electron microscopy and verified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and immunohistochemistry [16] . Nevertheless, other studies did not find this association, either by direct detection of the pathogen in atheromatous plaques in coronary arteries [17] or in seroepidemiological studies [18,19] . The possible causal role of C. pneumoniae in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis is controversial because of the several obstacles in establishing this association, including the difficulty of avoiding contagion Low calcium response E protein [10,14] 43 kDa Regulator type III secretion system Unknown Immunogenic 5…”