Chlamydia pneumoniae (TWAR) in atherosclerosis of the carotid artery.
BACKGROUND: Chlamydia pneumoniae has been demonstrated in atherosclerotic lesions of coronary arteries and aorta. A seroepidemiological study found C pneumoniae-specific antibody more frequently in persons with significant carotid artery wall thickening than in matched control subjects. METHODS AND RESULTS: Fresh-frozen or formalin-fixed tissue obtained at carotid endarterectomy was examined by immunocytochemistry (ICC) and the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the presence of C pneumoniae. Five of five fresh-frozen and formalin-fixed carotid endarterectomy specimens were positive for C pneumoniae by ICC (three of five by PCR). A total of 56 archival formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded carotid endarterectomy tissues from three hospitals were examined by ICC. Thirty-two were positive. Thirteen normal carotid artery tissue sections from six patients were negative for C pneumoniae. CONCLUSIONS: C pneumoniae organisms are frequently found in the advanced carotid atherosclerotic lesions of persons undergoing endarterectomy. Although these findings do not establish causality for C pneumoniae in carotid artery atherosclerosis, they should stimulate investigation of a possible causal or pathogenic role for the organism in the disease.[1]References
- Chlamydia pneumoniae (TWAR) in atherosclerosis of the carotid artery. Grayston, J.T., Kuo, C.C., Coulson, A.S., Campbell, L.A., Lawrence, R.D., Lee, M.J., Strandness, E.D., Wang, S.P. Circulation (1995) [Pubmed]
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