Infection with Chlamydia pneumoniae accelerates the development of atherosclerosis and treatment with azithromycin prevents it in a rabbit model

Chlamydia pneumoniae infection has been associated with atherosclerosis by serological studies and detection of bacterial antigen within plaque. We sought to evaluate a possible causal role in an animal model. Thirty New Zealand White rabbits were given three separate intranasal inoculations of eith...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Circulation (New York, N.Y.) N.Y.), 1998-02, Vol.97 (7), p.633-636
Main Authors: MUHLESTEIN, J. B, ANDERSON, J. L, HAMMOND, E. H, LIPING ZHAO, TREHAN, S, SCHWOBE, E. P, CARLQUIST, J. F
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Anti-Bacterial Agents - therapeutic use
Antigens, Bacterial - analysis
Aorta - microbiology
Aorta - pathology
Arteriosclerosis - etiology
Arteriosclerosis - microbiology
Arteriosclerosis - pathology
Arteriosclerosis - prevention & control
Atherosclerosis (general aspects, experimental research)
Azithromycin - therapeutic use
Biological and medical sciences
Blood and lymphatic vessels
Cardiology. Vascular system
Chlamydia Infections - complications
Chlamydia Infections - drug therapy
Chlamydophila pneumoniae - pathogenicity
Female
Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect
Humans
Medical sciences
Rabbits
Specific Pathogen-Free Organisms
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Chlamydia pneumoniae infection has been associated with atherosclerosis by serological studies and detection of bacterial antigen within plaque. We sought to evaluate a possible causal role in an animal model. Thirty New Zealand White rabbits were given three separate intranasal inoculations of either C pneumoniae (n = 20) or saline (n = 10) at 3-week intervals and fed chow enriched with a small amount (0.25%) of cholesterol. Immediately after the final inoculation, infected and control rabbits were randomized and begun on a 7-week course of azithromycin or no therapy. Three months after the final inoculation, rabbits were euthanatized and sections of thoracic aortas were blindly evaluated microscopically for maximal intimal thickness (MIT), percentage of luminal circumference involved (PLCI), and plaque area index (PAI) of atherosclerosis. Vascular chlamydial antigen was assessed by direct immunofluorescence. MIT differed among treatment groups (P=.009), showing an increase in infected rabbits (0.55 mm; SE = 0.15 mm) compared with uninfected controls (0.16 mm; SE = 0.06 mm) and with infected rabbits receiving antibiotics (0.20 mm; SE = 0.03 mm) (both P
ISSN:0009-7322
1524-4539
DOI:10.1161/01.CIR.97.7.633