title: The presence of some cytokines and Chlamydia pneumoniae in the atherosclerotic carotid plaque in patients with carotid artery stenosis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Over the last few years the role of microorganisms in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis has been widely discussed. Chlamydia pneumoniae activates immune cells to produce cytokines that are responsible for the formation of atheromatous carotid lesions.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study was carried out at the Department of Vascular, General and Transplantation Surgery, Wroclaw Medical University, in 2002-2003, on 100 consecutive symptomatic patients with internal carotid stenosis, who underwent an endarterectomy procedure. Each patient had their carotid artery sampled in order to find C. pneumoniae DNA using the nested PCR method and some cytokines (TGF-β, VEGF, FGF, TNF-α) using immunohistochemical examination. The control group consisted of 20 young organ donors who had been diagnosed with brain death and who had their healthy carotid artery harvested. Analogous genetic and immunohistochemical tests were performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We did not confirm the presence of either cytokines or C. pneumoniae in the healthy carotid arteries. The presence of FGF was probably due to intima fibroblast activity, which is responsible for elastin and collagen synthesis for the extracellular matrix. C. pneumoniae was discovered in 68% of patients with carotid plaques. Three cytokines (TGF-β, FGF, TNF-α) were detected in atherosclerotic internal carotid arteries as well.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Chronic infection by C. pneumoniae may exacerbate carotid plaque development and may lead to its destabilization.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, 4th Military Teaching Hospital, Wroclaw, Poland.
authors.forename: Dariusz
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Janczak
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathomorphology, Wroclaw Medical University, Wroclaw, Poland.
authors.forename: Piotr
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ziolkowski
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, 4th Military Teaching Hospital, Wroclaw, Poland.
authors.forename: Tomasz
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Szydełko
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, 4th Military Teaching Hospital, Wroclaw, Poland.
authors.forename: Tadeusz
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Dorobisz
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, 4th Military Teaching Hospital, Wroclaw, Poland.
authors.forename: Dawid
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Janczak
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, Wroclaw Medical University, Wroclaw, Poland.
authors.forename: Karolina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Dorobisz
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, 4th Military Teaching Hospital, Wroclaw, Poland.
authors.forename: Mariusz
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chabowski
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000473:pathology; D002339:Carotid Arteries / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000382:microbiology*; D016893:Carotid Stenosis / Q000382:microbiology*; D016993:Chlamydophila pneumoniae / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D016207:Cytokines / Q000032:analysis*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D058226:Plaque, Atherosclerotic / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000382:microbiology*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D016207:Cytokines; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha