Increased infiltration of Chlamydophila pneumoniae in the vessel wall of human veins after perfusion.
BACKGROUND
Several studies have suggested an association between Chlamydophila pneumoniae (Cp) infection and atherosclerosis. A recent study detected Cp DNA in the saphenous vein of 12% of all patients before bypass grafting and in 38% of failed grafts. We used a system in which human veins were perfused with autologous blood under arterial pressure.


METHODS
Veins were surplus segments of saphenous veins of coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) patients. Vein grafts were perfused with the blood of the same patient after CABG procedures. Veins were analysed for Cp-specific membrane protein using immunohistochemical and PCR analysis. Veins were analysed before and after perfusion (up to 4 h). The number of Cp positive cells was then quantified in the vein layers.


RESULTS
Cp protein was detected within macrophages only. In non-perfused veins, Cp was present in the adventitia in 91% of all patients, in the circular (64%) and longitudinal (23%) layer of the media. No positivity was found in the intima. Perfusion subsequently resulted in a significant increase of Cp positive cells within the circular layer of the media that, however, differed strongly between different patients. Cp DNA was not detected by PCR in those specimens.


CONCLUSIONS
Cp protein was present in 91% of veins, but the number of positive cells differed remarkably between patients. Perfusion of veins resulted in increased infiltration of Cp into the circular layer. These results may point to a putative discriminating role of Cp with respect to graft failure between different patients.
Kupreishvili
K
K
Department of Pathology, VU University Medical Centre, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. k.kupreishvili@vumc.nl
ter Weeme
M
M
Morré
S A
SA
van den Brule
A J C
AJ
Huybregts
M A J M
MA
Quax
P H A
PH
ten Velden
J
J
Van Hinsbergh
V W M
VW
Stooker
W
W
Eijsman
L
L
Niessen
H W M
HW
D002690:Chlamydia Infections / Q000382:microbiology*; D016993:Chlamydophila pneumoniae / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass / Q000379:methods*; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000601:surgery; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological; D010477:Perfusion / Q000379:methods*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012501:Saphenous Vein / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000637:transplantation; D013223:Statistics as Topic
D004269:DNA, Bacterial