title: Chlamydia pneumoniae infection of vascular smooth muscle and endothelial cells activates NF-kappaB and induces tissue factor and PAI-1 expression: a potential link to accelerated arteriosclerosis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Recent reports link C. pneumoniae infection of arteriosclerotic lesions to the precipitation of acute coronary syndromes, which also feature tissue factor and plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1) overexpression. We investigated whether or not C. pneumoniae can induce thrombogenicity by upregulation of procoagulant proteins.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Human vascular endothelial and smooth muscle cells were infected with a strain of C. pneumoniae isolated from an arteriosclerotic coronary artery. Tissue factor, PAI-1, and interleukin-6 expression was increased in infected cells. Concomitantly, NF-kappaB was activated and IkappaBalpha degraded. p50/p65 heterodimers were identified as the components responsible for the NF-kappaB activity.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These data provide evidence that C. pneumoniae infection can induce procoagulant protein and proinflammatory cytokine expression. This cellular response is accompanied by activation of NF-kappaB. Our results demonstrate how C. pneumoniae infection may initiate acute coronary syndromes.
authors.affiliation: Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine, Berlin, Germany. rdechend@mdc-berlin.de
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dechend
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Maass
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gieffers
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dietz
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Scheidereit
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Leutz
authors.forename: D C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Gulba
mesh_terms: D001161:Arteriosclerosis / Q000382:microbiology; D001808:Blood Vessels / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000382:microbiology*; D002689:Chlamydia / Q000378:metabolism*; D016993:Chlamydophila pneumoniae; D004730:Endothelium, Vascular / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D009131:Muscle, Smooth, Vascular / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000382:microbiology; D016328:NF-kappa B / Q000378:metabolism*; D017395:Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor 1 / Q000378:metabolism*; D012307:Risk Factors; D013925:Thromboplastin / Q000378:metabolism*; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D016328:NF-kappa B; D017395:Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor 1; D013925:Thromboplastin