Several antiseptic agents have been proposed for the treatment of peri-implantitis as a complemen... more Several antiseptic agents have been proposed for the treatment of peri-implantitis as a complementary therapeutic strategy in addition to mechanical devices. The aim of this study was to compare six different antiseptics, as well as alternative formulations of the same chemical agent, with respect to their decontamination efficacy and impact on chemical properties of the implant surface. Titanium disks with a micro-rough surface, previously contaminated with Porphyromonas gingivalis and Streptococcus mutans biofilms, were treated for 2 min with different antiseptics (liquid sodium hypochlorite 5.25%, gel sodium hypochlorite 5.25%, liquid chlorhexidine 0.2%, gel chlorhexidine 1%, gel citric acid 40%, and gel orthophosphoric acid 37%) or sterile saline solution (control) and their antibacterial activity as well as their ability to remove biofilm were assessed by viable bacterial count and scanning electron microscopy, respectively. Spectroscopic analysis was also performed on non-cont...
Background Quantification of intracellular bacteria is fundamental in many areas of cellular and ... more Background Quantification of intracellular bacteria is fundamental in many areas of cellular and clinical microbiology to study acute and chronic infections. Therefore, rapid, accurate and low-cost methods represent valuable tools in determining bacterial ability to persist and proliferate within eukaryotic cells. Results Herein, we present the first application of the immunofluorescence In-Cell Western (ICW) assay aimed at quantifying intracellular bacteria in in vitro infection models. The performance of this new approach was evaluated in cell culture infection models using three microorganisms with different lifestyles. Two facultative intracellular bacteria, the fast-growing Shigella flexneri and a persistent strain of Escherichia coli, as well as the obligate intracellular bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis were chosen as bacterial models. The ICW assay was performed in parallel with conventional quantification methods, i.e. colony forming units (CFUs) and inclusion forming units ...
Research in chlamydial genetics is challenging because of its obligate intracellular developmenta... more Research in chlamydial genetics is challenging because of its obligate intracellular developmental cycle. systems exist that allow studies of different aspects of basic biology of chlamydiae, the murine model is one of great importance and thus an essential research tool. carries a plasmid that has a role in virulence. Our aim was to compare and contrast the plasmid-free phenotype with that of a chromosomally isogenic plasmid-bearing strain, through the inclusion phase of the developmental cycle. We measured infectivity for plasmid bearing and plasmid-cured by inclusion forming assays in McCoy cells and in parallel bacterial chromosome replication by quantitative PCR, throughout the developmental cycle. In addition to these studies, we have carefully monitored chlamydial inclusion formation by confocal microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. A new /chlamydial shuttle vector (pNigg::GFP) was constructed using standard cloning technology and used to transform for further phe...
Frontiers in cellular and infection microbiology, 2017
Chlamydia trachomatis genital infection continues to be an important public health problem worldw... more Chlamydia trachomatis genital infection continues to be an important public health problem worldwide due to its increasing incidence. C. trachomatis infection can lead to severe sequelae, such as pelvic inflammatory disease, obstructive infertility, and preterm birth. Recently, it has been suggested that the cervico-vaginal microbiota may be an important defense factor toward C. trachomatis infection as well as the development of chronic sequelae. Therefore, the investigation of microbial profiles associated to chlamydial infection is of the utmost importance. Here we present a pilot study aiming to characterize, through the metagenomic analysis of sequenced 16s rRNA gene amplicons, the cervical microbiota from reproductive age women positive to C. trachomatis infection. The main finding of our study showed a marked increase in bacterial diversity in asymptomatic C. trachomatis positive women as compared to healthy controls in terms of Shannon's diversity and Shannon's evenn...
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a major public health problem in developed countries with over 17... more Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a major public health problem in developed countries with over 17 million deaths per year. In the last decade, several infectious agents rather than any single pathogen, including Chlamydia pneumoniae and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), have been shown to contribute to the development of atherosclerosis and subsequent cardiovascular events by inducing systemic inflammation and/or acting directly on the vascular wall. For the first time, we evaluated C. pneumonia DNA in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from HIV patients by real-time polymerase chain reaction in order to shed light on C. pneumonia as a co-factor with HIV in the development of CVDs. C. pneumonia DNA was not detected in our virologically suppressed HIV patients (<37 copies/mL). This finding may be related to high CD4+T cell count (> 500 cells/μl) found in HIV patients suggesting functional cell-mediated immunity as a fundamental mechanism for the clearance of chlamydial infect...
Chlamydia trachomatis is an obligate, intracellular pathogen responsible for the most common sexu... more Chlamydia trachomatis is an obligate, intracellular pathogen responsible for the most common sexually transmitted bacterial disease worldwide, causing acute and chronic infections. The acute infection is susceptible to antibiotics, whereas the chronic one needs prolonged therapies, thus increasing the risk of developing antibiotic resistance. Novel alternative therapies are needed. The intracellular development of C. trachomatis requires essential nutrients, including iron. Iron-chelating drugs inhibit C. trachomatis developmental cycle. Lactoferrin (Lf), a pleiotropic iron binding glycoprotein, could be a promising candidate against C. trachomatis infection. Similarly to the efficacy against other intracellular pathogens, bovine Lf (bLf) could both interfere with C. trachomatis entry into epithelial cells and exert an anti-inflammatory activity. In vitro and in vivo effects of bLf against C. trachomatis infectious and inflammatory process has been investigated. BLf inhibits C. trac...
Chlamydia pneumoniae, an obligate intracellular pathogen, is known as a leading cause of respirat... more Chlamydia pneumoniae, an obligate intracellular pathogen, is known as a leading cause of respiratory tract infections and, in the last two decades, has been widely associated with atherosclerosis by seroepidemiological studies, and direct detection of the microorganism within atheroma. C. pneumoniae is presumed to play a role in atherosclerosis for its ability to disseminate via peripheral blood mononuclear cells, to replicate and persist within vascular cells, and for its pro-inflammatory and angiogenic effects. Once inside the vascular tissue, C. pneumoniae infection has been shown to induce the production of reactive oxygen species in all the cells involved in atherosclerotic process such as macrophages, platelets, endothelial cells, and vascular smooth muscle cells, leading to oxidative stress. The aim of this review is to summarize the data linking C. pneumoniae-induced oxidative stress to atherosclerotic lesion development.
Chlamydia pneumoniae, a pathogenic bacteria responsible for respiratory tract infections, is know... more Chlamydia pneumoniae, a pathogenic bacteria responsible for respiratory tract infections, is known as the most implicated infectious agent in atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Accumulating evidence suggests that C. pneumoniae-induced oxidative stress may play a critical role in the pathogenesis of CVDs. Indeed, the overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) within macrophages, endothelial cells, platelets and vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) after C. pneumoniae exposure, has been shown to cause low density lipoprotein oxidation, foam cell formation, endothelial dysfunction, platelet adhesion and aggregation, and VSMC proliferation and migration, all responsible for the typical pathological changes of atherosclerotic plaque. The aim of this review is to improve our insight into C. pneumoniae-induced oxidative stress in order to suggest potential strategies for CVD prevention. Several antioxidants, acting on multi-enzymatic targets related to ROS production induced by C. pneumoniae, have been discussed. A future strategy for the prevention of C. pneumoniae-associated CVDs will be to target chlamydial HSP60, involved in oxidative stress.
International journal of immunopathology and pharmacology
Chlamydiaceae is a family of obligate intracellular bacteria generally considered energy parasite... more Chlamydiaceae is a family of obligate intracellular bacteria generally considered energy parasites. Several studies have suggested that Chlamydiae are capable of independently producing energy and, more importantly, several genes involved in the energy metabolism are up-regulated during the persistent state. Thus, it has been suggested that chlamydial persistence could be a complex and flexible metabolic strategy designed to favor a lengthy survival in the host cell by evading the immune response. In conclusion, more detailed studies on the shift in the chlamydial energy metabolism, from the active to the persistent form, may be helpful in future to determine whether chlamydial persistence observed in vitro does occur in vivo and whether chronic sequelae of chlamydial diseases may be related to the persistence.
Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology, 2015
Chlamydia pneumoniae has been associated to atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. The aim of o... more Chlamydia pneumoniae has been associated to atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. The aim of our study was to characterize, for the first time, a C. pneumoniae strain isolated from the gingival crevicular fluid of a patient with chronic periodontitis, described as a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. C. pneumoniae isolate was characterized and compared to the respiratory AR-39 strain by VD4-ompA genotyping and by investigating the intracellular growth in epithelial and macrophage cell lines and its ability to induce macrophage-derived foam cells. Inflammatory cytokine levels were determined in the gingival crevicular fluid sample. C. pneumoniae isolate showed a 99% similarity with the AR-39 strain in the VD4-ompA gene sequence and shared a comparable growth kinetic in epithelial cells and macrophages, as evidenced by the infectious progeny and by the number of chlamydial genomic copies. C. pneumoniae isolate significantly increased the number of foam cells as compared to uninfected and LDL-treated macrophages (45 vs. 6%, P = 0.0065) and to the AR-39 strain (45 vs. 30%, P = 0.0065). Significantly increased levels of interleukin 1-β (2.1 ± 0.3 pg/µL) and interleukin 6 (0.6 ± 0.08 pg/µL) were found. Our results suggest that C. pneumoniae may harbor inside oral cavity and potentially be atherogenic, even though further studies will be needed to clarify the involvement of C. pneumoniae in chronic periodontitis as a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases.
Several studies have attempted to relate the C. pneumoniae-mediated inflammatory state with ather... more Several studies have attempted to relate the C. pneumoniae-mediated inflammatory state with atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases, providing inconsistent results. Therefore, we performed a meta-analysis to clarify whether C. pneumoniae may contribute to the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis by enhancing inflammation. 12 case-control, 6 cross-sectional, and 7 prospective studies with a total of 10,176 patients have been included in this meta-analysis. Odds Ratio (OR) with a 95% confidence interval was used to assess the seroprevalence of C. pneumoniae and differences between levels of inflammatory markers were assessed by standard mean differences. Publication bias was performed to ensure the statistical power. hsCRP, fibrinogen, interleukin- (IL-) 6, TNF-α, and IFN-γ showed a significant increase in patients with atherosclerosis compared to healthy controls (P &lt; 0.05), along with a higher seroprevalence of C. pneumoniae (OR of 3.11, 95% CI: 2.88-3.36, P &lt; 0.001). More interestingly, hsCRP, IL-6, and fibrinogen levels were significantly higher in C. pneumoniae IgA seropositive compared to seronegative atherosclerotic patients (P &lt; 0.0001). In conclusion, the present meta-analysis suggests that C. pneumoniae infection may contribute to atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases by enhancing the inflammatory state, and, in particular, seropositivity to C. pneumoniae IgA, together with hsCRP, fibrinogen, and IL-6, may be predictive of atherosclerotic cardiovascular risk.
Journal of biological regulators and homeostatic agents
Chlamydia pneumoniae, a pathogen responsible for respiratory tract infections, has been associate... more Chlamydia pneumoniae, a pathogen responsible for respiratory tract infections, has been associated with atherosclerosis which, along with hypertension, hyperlipidemia, cardiovascular and/or cerebrovascular ischemia and stroke, is a risk factor for chronic neurological disorders. Several studies have demonstrated the ability of C. pneumoniae to disseminate from lungs to arteries through peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Once inside the vascular tissue, C. pneumoniae infection may disseminate via peripheral monocytes to the brain over the intact blood-brain barrier, and contribute to the development of chronic neurological disorders. The aim of our study was to evaluate whether past C. pneumoniae vascular infection may promote the dissemination of this microorganism to the brain, therefore we investigated the presence of C. pneumoniae in post-mortem brain tissue specimens of patients with past chlamydial vascular infection. Seventy six post-mortem brain tissue specimens from 19 pati...
Journal of biological regulators and homeostatic agents
The involvement of Chlamydia pneumoniae in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis has been suggested... more The involvement of Chlamydia pneumoniae in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis has been suggested by numerous seroepidemiological, in vivo and in vitro studies. In particular, it has been shown that C. pneumoniae is able to promote the accumulation of low-density lipoproteins into macrophages, thus facilitating foam cell formation. The aim of our study was to investigate the effects of resveratrol on macrophage derived foam cell formation induced by C. pneumoniae, examining its underlying biochemical mechanisms. Our results showed a relevant decrease in the number of foam cells, in the production of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, superoxide anion and IL 17A while treating C. pneumoniae infected macrophages with resveratrol. Furthermore, the inhibition of Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptors gamma by a specific antagonist (GW 9662), in presence of resveratrol and C. pneumoniae, enhanced intracellular lipid and cholesterol accumulation and the subsequent foam cell for...
Atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases, chronic inflammatory diseases of multifactorial etiology... more Atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases, chronic inflammatory diseases of multifactorial etiology, are the lead-
Chlamydia infection of the cardiovascular system is associated with pericarditis, endocarditis an... more Chlamydia infection of the cardiovascular system is associated with pericarditis, endocarditis and myocarditis. Chlamydia particles can also be observed in damaged heart valves. There is now good evidence that the lesions of arteriosclerosis and aortic aneurysm as well as valvular disease may be associated with C. pneumoniae infection. Patients with acute myocardial infarction show seroconversion against Chlamydia lipopolysaccharide. In a prospective study of 4000 healthy hypercholesterolemic men, signs suggestive of chronic C. pneumoniae infection increased the risk of a cardiac event three---fold. This risk factor is synergistic with the smoking risk. Immunohistochemistry also demonstrated Chlamydia lipopolysaccharide in samples of aortic aneurysm. Chlamydial inflammation may play a role in the oxidation of low density lipoprotein in atherosclerotic lesions.
Chlamydia trachomatis, the most common cause of sexually transmitted bacterial infection worldwid... more Chlamydia trachomatis, the most common cause of sexually transmitted bacterial infection worldwide, has a unique biphasic developmental cycle alternating between the infectious elementary body and the replicative reticulate body. C. trachomatis is responsible for severe reproductive complications including pelvic inflammatory disease, ectopic pregnancy, and obstructive infertility. The aim of our study was to evaluate whether Mentha suaveolens essential oil (EOMS) can be considered as a promising candidate for preventing C. trachomatis infection. Specifically, we investigated the in vitro effects of EOMS towards C. trachomatis analysing the different phases of chlamydial developmental cycle. Our results demonstrated that EOMS was effective towards C. trachomatis, whereby it not only inactivated infectious elementary bodies but also inhibited chlamydial replication. Our study also revealed the effectiveness of EOMS, in combination with erythromycin, towards C. trachomatis with a substantial reduction in the minimum effect dose of antibiotic. In conclusion, EOMS treatment may represent a preventative strategy since it may reduce C. trachomatis transmission in the population and, thereby, reduce the number of new chlamydial infections and risk of developing of severe sequelae.
Several antiseptic agents have been proposed for the treatment of peri-implantitis as a complemen... more Several antiseptic agents have been proposed for the treatment of peri-implantitis as a complementary therapeutic strategy in addition to mechanical devices. The aim of this study was to compare six different antiseptics, as well as alternative formulations of the same chemical agent, with respect to their decontamination efficacy and impact on chemical properties of the implant surface. Titanium disks with a micro-rough surface, previously contaminated with Porphyromonas gingivalis and Streptococcus mutans biofilms, were treated for 2 min with different antiseptics (liquid sodium hypochlorite 5.25%, gel sodium hypochlorite 5.25%, liquid chlorhexidine 0.2%, gel chlorhexidine 1%, gel citric acid 40%, and gel orthophosphoric acid 37%) or sterile saline solution (control) and their antibacterial activity as well as their ability to remove biofilm were assessed by viable bacterial count and scanning electron microscopy, respectively. Spectroscopic analysis was also performed on non-cont...
Background Quantification of intracellular bacteria is fundamental in many areas of cellular and ... more Background Quantification of intracellular bacteria is fundamental in many areas of cellular and clinical microbiology to study acute and chronic infections. Therefore, rapid, accurate and low-cost methods represent valuable tools in determining bacterial ability to persist and proliferate within eukaryotic cells. Results Herein, we present the first application of the immunofluorescence In-Cell Western (ICW) assay aimed at quantifying intracellular bacteria in in vitro infection models. The performance of this new approach was evaluated in cell culture infection models using three microorganisms with different lifestyles. Two facultative intracellular bacteria, the fast-growing Shigella flexneri and a persistent strain of Escherichia coli, as well as the obligate intracellular bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis were chosen as bacterial models. The ICW assay was performed in parallel with conventional quantification methods, i.e. colony forming units (CFUs) and inclusion forming units ...
Research in chlamydial genetics is challenging because of its obligate intracellular developmenta... more Research in chlamydial genetics is challenging because of its obligate intracellular developmental cycle. systems exist that allow studies of different aspects of basic biology of chlamydiae, the murine model is one of great importance and thus an essential research tool. carries a plasmid that has a role in virulence. Our aim was to compare and contrast the plasmid-free phenotype with that of a chromosomally isogenic plasmid-bearing strain, through the inclusion phase of the developmental cycle. We measured infectivity for plasmid bearing and plasmid-cured by inclusion forming assays in McCoy cells and in parallel bacterial chromosome replication by quantitative PCR, throughout the developmental cycle. In addition to these studies, we have carefully monitored chlamydial inclusion formation by confocal microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. A new /chlamydial shuttle vector (pNigg::GFP) was constructed using standard cloning technology and used to transform for further phe...
Frontiers in cellular and infection microbiology, 2017
Chlamydia trachomatis genital infection continues to be an important public health problem worldw... more Chlamydia trachomatis genital infection continues to be an important public health problem worldwide due to its increasing incidence. C. trachomatis infection can lead to severe sequelae, such as pelvic inflammatory disease, obstructive infertility, and preterm birth. Recently, it has been suggested that the cervico-vaginal microbiota may be an important defense factor toward C. trachomatis infection as well as the development of chronic sequelae. Therefore, the investigation of microbial profiles associated to chlamydial infection is of the utmost importance. Here we present a pilot study aiming to characterize, through the metagenomic analysis of sequenced 16s rRNA gene amplicons, the cervical microbiota from reproductive age women positive to C. trachomatis infection. The main finding of our study showed a marked increase in bacterial diversity in asymptomatic C. trachomatis positive women as compared to healthy controls in terms of Shannon's diversity and Shannon's evenn...
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a major public health problem in developed countries with over 17... more Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a major public health problem in developed countries with over 17 million deaths per year. In the last decade, several infectious agents rather than any single pathogen, including Chlamydia pneumoniae and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), have been shown to contribute to the development of atherosclerosis and subsequent cardiovascular events by inducing systemic inflammation and/or acting directly on the vascular wall. For the first time, we evaluated C. pneumonia DNA in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from HIV patients by real-time polymerase chain reaction in order to shed light on C. pneumonia as a co-factor with HIV in the development of CVDs. C. pneumonia DNA was not detected in our virologically suppressed HIV patients (<37 copies/mL). This finding may be related to high CD4+T cell count (> 500 cells/μl) found in HIV patients suggesting functional cell-mediated immunity as a fundamental mechanism for the clearance of chlamydial infect...
Chlamydia trachomatis is an obligate, intracellular pathogen responsible for the most common sexu... more Chlamydia trachomatis is an obligate, intracellular pathogen responsible for the most common sexually transmitted bacterial disease worldwide, causing acute and chronic infections. The acute infection is susceptible to antibiotics, whereas the chronic one needs prolonged therapies, thus increasing the risk of developing antibiotic resistance. Novel alternative therapies are needed. The intracellular development of C. trachomatis requires essential nutrients, including iron. Iron-chelating drugs inhibit C. trachomatis developmental cycle. Lactoferrin (Lf), a pleiotropic iron binding glycoprotein, could be a promising candidate against C. trachomatis infection. Similarly to the efficacy against other intracellular pathogens, bovine Lf (bLf) could both interfere with C. trachomatis entry into epithelial cells and exert an anti-inflammatory activity. In vitro and in vivo effects of bLf against C. trachomatis infectious and inflammatory process has been investigated. BLf inhibits C. trac...
Chlamydia pneumoniae, an obligate intracellular pathogen, is known as a leading cause of respirat... more Chlamydia pneumoniae, an obligate intracellular pathogen, is known as a leading cause of respiratory tract infections and, in the last two decades, has been widely associated with atherosclerosis by seroepidemiological studies, and direct detection of the microorganism within atheroma. C. pneumoniae is presumed to play a role in atherosclerosis for its ability to disseminate via peripheral blood mononuclear cells, to replicate and persist within vascular cells, and for its pro-inflammatory and angiogenic effects. Once inside the vascular tissue, C. pneumoniae infection has been shown to induce the production of reactive oxygen species in all the cells involved in atherosclerotic process such as macrophages, platelets, endothelial cells, and vascular smooth muscle cells, leading to oxidative stress. The aim of this review is to summarize the data linking C. pneumoniae-induced oxidative stress to atherosclerotic lesion development.
Chlamydia pneumoniae, a pathogenic bacteria responsible for respiratory tract infections, is know... more Chlamydia pneumoniae, a pathogenic bacteria responsible for respiratory tract infections, is known as the most implicated infectious agent in atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Accumulating evidence suggests that C. pneumoniae-induced oxidative stress may play a critical role in the pathogenesis of CVDs. Indeed, the overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) within macrophages, endothelial cells, platelets and vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) after C. pneumoniae exposure, has been shown to cause low density lipoprotein oxidation, foam cell formation, endothelial dysfunction, platelet adhesion and aggregation, and VSMC proliferation and migration, all responsible for the typical pathological changes of atherosclerotic plaque. The aim of this review is to improve our insight into C. pneumoniae-induced oxidative stress in order to suggest potential strategies for CVD prevention. Several antioxidants, acting on multi-enzymatic targets related to ROS production induced by C. pneumoniae, have been discussed. A future strategy for the prevention of C. pneumoniae-associated CVDs will be to target chlamydial HSP60, involved in oxidative stress.
International journal of immunopathology and pharmacology
Chlamydiaceae is a family of obligate intracellular bacteria generally considered energy parasite... more Chlamydiaceae is a family of obligate intracellular bacteria generally considered energy parasites. Several studies have suggested that Chlamydiae are capable of independently producing energy and, more importantly, several genes involved in the energy metabolism are up-regulated during the persistent state. Thus, it has been suggested that chlamydial persistence could be a complex and flexible metabolic strategy designed to favor a lengthy survival in the host cell by evading the immune response. In conclusion, more detailed studies on the shift in the chlamydial energy metabolism, from the active to the persistent form, may be helpful in future to determine whether chlamydial persistence observed in vitro does occur in vivo and whether chronic sequelae of chlamydial diseases may be related to the persistence.
Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology, 2015
Chlamydia pneumoniae has been associated to atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. The aim of o... more Chlamydia pneumoniae has been associated to atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. The aim of our study was to characterize, for the first time, a C. pneumoniae strain isolated from the gingival crevicular fluid of a patient with chronic periodontitis, described as a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. C. pneumoniae isolate was characterized and compared to the respiratory AR-39 strain by VD4-ompA genotyping and by investigating the intracellular growth in epithelial and macrophage cell lines and its ability to induce macrophage-derived foam cells. Inflammatory cytokine levels were determined in the gingival crevicular fluid sample. C. pneumoniae isolate showed a 99% similarity with the AR-39 strain in the VD4-ompA gene sequence and shared a comparable growth kinetic in epithelial cells and macrophages, as evidenced by the infectious progeny and by the number of chlamydial genomic copies. C. pneumoniae isolate significantly increased the number of foam cells as compared to uninfected and LDL-treated macrophages (45 vs. 6%, P = 0.0065) and to the AR-39 strain (45 vs. 30%, P = 0.0065). Significantly increased levels of interleukin 1-β (2.1 ± 0.3 pg/µL) and interleukin 6 (0.6 ± 0.08 pg/µL) were found. Our results suggest that C. pneumoniae may harbor inside oral cavity and potentially be atherogenic, even though further studies will be needed to clarify the involvement of C. pneumoniae in chronic periodontitis as a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases.
Several studies have attempted to relate the C. pneumoniae-mediated inflammatory state with ather... more Several studies have attempted to relate the C. pneumoniae-mediated inflammatory state with atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases, providing inconsistent results. Therefore, we performed a meta-analysis to clarify whether C. pneumoniae may contribute to the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis by enhancing inflammation. 12 case-control, 6 cross-sectional, and 7 prospective studies with a total of 10,176 patients have been included in this meta-analysis. Odds Ratio (OR) with a 95% confidence interval was used to assess the seroprevalence of C. pneumoniae and differences between levels of inflammatory markers were assessed by standard mean differences. Publication bias was performed to ensure the statistical power. hsCRP, fibrinogen, interleukin- (IL-) 6, TNF-α, and IFN-γ showed a significant increase in patients with atherosclerosis compared to healthy controls (P &lt; 0.05), along with a higher seroprevalence of C. pneumoniae (OR of 3.11, 95% CI: 2.88-3.36, P &lt; 0.001). More interestingly, hsCRP, IL-6, and fibrinogen levels were significantly higher in C. pneumoniae IgA seropositive compared to seronegative atherosclerotic patients (P &lt; 0.0001). In conclusion, the present meta-analysis suggests that C. pneumoniae infection may contribute to atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases by enhancing the inflammatory state, and, in particular, seropositivity to C. pneumoniae IgA, together with hsCRP, fibrinogen, and IL-6, may be predictive of atherosclerotic cardiovascular risk.
Journal of biological regulators and homeostatic agents
Chlamydia pneumoniae, a pathogen responsible for respiratory tract infections, has been associate... more Chlamydia pneumoniae, a pathogen responsible for respiratory tract infections, has been associated with atherosclerosis which, along with hypertension, hyperlipidemia, cardiovascular and/or cerebrovascular ischemia and stroke, is a risk factor for chronic neurological disorders. Several studies have demonstrated the ability of C. pneumoniae to disseminate from lungs to arteries through peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Once inside the vascular tissue, C. pneumoniae infection may disseminate via peripheral monocytes to the brain over the intact blood-brain barrier, and contribute to the development of chronic neurological disorders. The aim of our study was to evaluate whether past C. pneumoniae vascular infection may promote the dissemination of this microorganism to the brain, therefore we investigated the presence of C. pneumoniae in post-mortem brain tissue specimens of patients with past chlamydial vascular infection. Seventy six post-mortem brain tissue specimens from 19 pati...
Journal of biological regulators and homeostatic agents
The involvement of Chlamydia pneumoniae in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis has been suggested... more The involvement of Chlamydia pneumoniae in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis has been suggested by numerous seroepidemiological, in vivo and in vitro studies. In particular, it has been shown that C. pneumoniae is able to promote the accumulation of low-density lipoproteins into macrophages, thus facilitating foam cell formation. The aim of our study was to investigate the effects of resveratrol on macrophage derived foam cell formation induced by C. pneumoniae, examining its underlying biochemical mechanisms. Our results showed a relevant decrease in the number of foam cells, in the production of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, superoxide anion and IL 17A while treating C. pneumoniae infected macrophages with resveratrol. Furthermore, the inhibition of Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptors gamma by a specific antagonist (GW 9662), in presence of resveratrol and C. pneumoniae, enhanced intracellular lipid and cholesterol accumulation and the subsequent foam cell for...
Atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases, chronic inflammatory diseases of multifactorial etiology... more Atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases, chronic inflammatory diseases of multifactorial etiology, are the lead-
Chlamydia infection of the cardiovascular system is associated with pericarditis, endocarditis an... more Chlamydia infection of the cardiovascular system is associated with pericarditis, endocarditis and myocarditis. Chlamydia particles can also be observed in damaged heart valves. There is now good evidence that the lesions of arteriosclerosis and aortic aneurysm as well as valvular disease may be associated with C. pneumoniae infection. Patients with acute myocardial infarction show seroconversion against Chlamydia lipopolysaccharide. In a prospective study of 4000 healthy hypercholesterolemic men, signs suggestive of chronic C. pneumoniae infection increased the risk of a cardiac event three---fold. This risk factor is synergistic with the smoking risk. Immunohistochemistry also demonstrated Chlamydia lipopolysaccharide in samples of aortic aneurysm. Chlamydial inflammation may play a role in the oxidation of low density lipoprotein in atherosclerotic lesions.
Chlamydia trachomatis, the most common cause of sexually transmitted bacterial infection worldwid... more Chlamydia trachomatis, the most common cause of sexually transmitted bacterial infection worldwide, has a unique biphasic developmental cycle alternating between the infectious elementary body and the replicative reticulate body. C. trachomatis is responsible for severe reproductive complications including pelvic inflammatory disease, ectopic pregnancy, and obstructive infertility. The aim of our study was to evaluate whether Mentha suaveolens essential oil (EOMS) can be considered as a promising candidate for preventing C. trachomatis infection. Specifically, we investigated the in vitro effects of EOMS towards C. trachomatis analysing the different phases of chlamydial developmental cycle. Our results demonstrated that EOMS was effective towards C. trachomatis, whereby it not only inactivated infectious elementary bodies but also inhibited chlamydial replication. Our study also revealed the effectiveness of EOMS, in combination with erythromycin, towards C. trachomatis with a substantial reduction in the minimum effect dose of antibiotic. In conclusion, EOMS treatment may represent a preventative strategy since it may reduce C. trachomatis transmission in the population and, thereby, reduce the number of new chlamydial infections and risk of developing of severe sequelae.
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Papers by Simone Filardo