1887

Abstract

The incidence of infection was determined in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD) by prospective serial serology. Chlamydia-specific IgG, IgM and IgA antibodies were detected with a recombinant DNA lipopolysaccharide (LPS) ELISA as well as with a micro-immunofluorescence (MIF) assay with elementary bodies. From 271 consecutive COPD patients who visited the outpatient clinic of the department of pulmonary diseases (211 males, 60 females, age range 34-88 years, mean age 66 SD 10 years), blood samples (n = 1058) were taken every 2-7 months; the observation period ranged from 3 to 19 months (mean 15 SD 4). The prevalence of chlamydial IgG was 72% with the MIF and 53% with the rDNA LPS ELISA. More than 90% of the COPD patients had no significant changes in their chlamydia-specific IgG, IgA and IgM titres in either test during the observation period. Seven (3%) patients had MIF results indicating acute infection during their surveillance period, of whom five were confirmed by rDNA LPS ELISA. Eleven (4%) additional patients were infected during observation, as determined by rDNA LPS ELISA only. These patients had significantly elevated -specific IgG and IgA MIF titres, as compared with the patients without infection. All 18 patients with serological evidence of acute infection during their surveillance period were re-tested in a commercial MIF test that can distinguish between and LPS-specific antibodies, but no evidence of or infection was found. The incidence of chlamydial infection was 2.2 and 5.3/100 person-years, when diagnosed by MIF and rDNA LPS ELISA, respectively. It is concluded that the rDNA LPS chlamydia assay may currently be the most sensitive serological tool for diagnosing recent respiratory chlamydia infections and that infection occurs frequently in COPD patients.

Loading

Article metrics loading...

/content/journal/jmm/10.1099/00222615-46-11-959
1997-11-01
2024-03-29
Loading full text...

Full text loading...

/deliver/fulltext/jmm/46/11/medmicro-46-11-959.html?itemId=/content/journal/jmm/10.1099/00222615-46-11-959&mimeType=html&fmt=ahah

References

  1. Ben–Yaakov M., Lazarovich Z., Beer S., Levin A., Shoham I., Boldur I. Prevalence of Chlamydia pneumoniae antibodies in patients with acute respiratory infections in Israel. J Clin Pathol 1994; 47:232–235
    [Google Scholar]
  2. Freidank H. M., Brauer D. Prevalence of antibodies to Chlamydia pneumoniae TWAR in a group of German medical students. J Infect 1993; 27:89–93
    [Google Scholar]
  3. Wang J.-H., Liu Y.-C., Cheng D.-L., Yeng M.-Y., Chen Y.-S., Chen B.-C. Seroprevalence of Chlamydia pneumoniae in Taiwan. Scand J Infect Dis 1993; 25:565–568
    [Google Scholar]
  4. Marton A., Karolyi A., Szalka A. Prevalence of Chlamydia pneumoniae antibodies in Hungary. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis 1992; 11:139–142
    [Google Scholar]
  5. Ekman M. R., Leinonen M., Syijala H., Linnanmaki E., Kujala P., Saikku P. Evaluation of serological methods in the diagnosis of Chlamydia pneumoniae pneumonia during an epidemic in Finland. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis 1993; 12:756–760
    [Google Scholar]
  6. Grayston J. T., Aldous M. B., Easton A. Evidence that Chlamydia pneumoniae causes pneumonia and bronchitis. J Infect Dis 1993; 168:1231–1235
    [Google Scholar]
  7. Karvonen M., Tuomilehto J., Pitkaniemi J., Saikku P. The epidemic cycle of Chlamydia pneumoniae infection in eastern Finland, 1972-1987. Epidemiol Infect 1993; 110:349–360
    [Google Scholar]
  8. Pacheco A., Gonzalez Sainz J., Arocena C., Rebollar M., Antela A., Guerrero A. Community acquired pneumonia caused by Chlamydia pneumoniae strain TWAR in chronic cardiopulmonary disease in the elderly. Respiration 1991; 58:316–320
    [Google Scholar]
  9. Aldous M. B., Grayston J. T., Wang S.-P., Foy H. M. Seroepidemiology of Chlamydia pneumoniae TWAR infection in Seattle families, 1966-1979. J Infect Dis 1992; 166:646–649
    [Google Scholar]
  10. Sundelof B., Gnarpe J., Gnarpe H., Grillner L., Darougar S. Chlamydia pneumoniae in Swedish patients. Scand J Infect Dis 1993; 25:429–433
    [Google Scholar]
  11. Verkooyen R. P., Hazenberg M. A., Van Haaren G. H. Age-related interference with Chlamydia pneumoniae microimmunofluorescence serology due to circulating rheumatoid factor. J Clin Microbiol 1992; 30:1287–1290
    [Google Scholar]
  12. Saikku P. Chlamydial serology. Scand J Infect Dis Suppl 1982; 32:34–37
    [Google Scholar]
  13. Brade L., Brunnemann H., Ernst M. Occurrence of antibodies against chlamydial lipopolysaccharide in human sera as measured by ELISA using an artificial glycoconjUgate antigen. FEMS Immunol Med Microbiol 1994; 8:27–41
    [Google Scholar]
  14. Holst O., Brade L., Kosma P., Brade H. Structure, serological specificity, and synthesis of artificial glycoconjugates representing the genus-specific lipopolysaccharide epitope of Chlamydia spp. J Bacteriol 1991; 173:1862–1866
    [Google Scholar]
  15. Brade L., Holst O., Kosma P. Characterization of murine monoclonal and murine, rabbit, and human polyclonal antibodies against chlamydial lipopolysaccharide. Infect Immun 1990; 58:205–213
    [Google Scholar]
  16. Wang S. P., Grayston J. T., Alexander E. R., Holmes K. K. Simplified microimmunofluorescence test with trachoma-lymphogranuloma venereum (Chlamydia trachomatis) antigens for use as a screening test for antibody. J Clin Microbiol 1975; 1:250–255
    [Google Scholar]
  17. Wang S. P., Grayston J. T. Immunologic relationship between genital TRIC, lymphogranuloma venereum, and related organisms in a new microtiter indirect immunofluorescence test. Am J Ophthalmol 1970; 70:367–374
    [Google Scholar]
  18. Kern D. G., Neill M. A., Schachter J. A seroepidemiologic study of Chlamydia pneumoniae in Rhode Island. Evidence of serologic cross-reactivity. Chest 1993; 104:208–213
    [Google Scholar]
  19. Ozanne G., Lefebvre J. Specificity of the microimmunofluorescence assay for the serodiagnosis of Chlamydia pneumoniae infections. Can J Microbiol 1992; 38:1185–1189
    [Google Scholar]
  20. Moss T. R., Darougar S., Woodland R. M., Nathan M., Dines R. J., Cathrine V. Antibodies to Chlamydia species in patients attending a genitourinary clinic and the impact of antibodies to C. pneumoniae and C. psittaci on the sensitivity and the specificity of C. trachomatis serology tests. Sex Transm Dis 1993; 20:61–65
    [Google Scholar]
  21. Grayston J. T., Wang S. P., Kuo C. C., Campbell L. A. Current knowledge on Chlamydia pneumoniae, strain TWAR, an important cause of pneumonia and other acute respiratory diseases. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis 1989; 8:191–202
    [Google Scholar]
  22. Falck G., Gnarpe J., Gnarpe H. Persistent Chlamydia pneumoniae infection in a Swedish family. Scand J Infect Dis 1996; 28:271–273
    [Google Scholar]
  23. Bauwens J. E., Gibbons M. S., Hubbard M. M., Stamm W. E. Chlamydia pneumoniae (strain TWAR) isolated from two symptom-free children during evaluation for possible sexual assault. J Pediatr 1991; 119:591–593
    [Google Scholar]
  24. Hyman C. L., Augenbraun M. H., Roblin P. M., Schachter J., Hammerschlag M. R. Asymptomatic respiratory tract infection with Chlamydia pneumoniae TWAR. J Clin Microbiol 1991; 29:2082–2083
    [Google Scholar]
  25. Hyman C. L., Roblin P. M., Gaydos C. A., Quinn T. C., Schachter J., Hammerschlag M. R. Prevalence of asymptomatic nasopharyngeal carriage of Chlamydia pneumoniae in subjectively healthy adults: assessment by polymerase chain reaction-enzyme immunoassay and culture. Clin Infect Dis 1995; 20:1174–1178
    [Google Scholar]
  26. Emre U., Roblin P. M., Gelling M. The association of Chlamydia pneumoniae infection and reactive airway disease in children. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 1994; 148:727–732
    [Google Scholar]
  27. Grayston J. T. Infections caused by Chlamydia pneumoniae strain TWAR. Clin Infect Dis 1992; 15:757–761
    [Google Scholar]
http://instance.metastore.ingenta.com/content/journal/jmm/10.1099/00222615-46-11-959
Loading
/content/journal/jmm/10.1099/00222615-46-11-959
Loading

Data & Media loading...

This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was a Success
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error