Hm. Freidank et al., IMMUNE-RESPONSE TO CHLAMYDIA-TRACHOMATIS HEAT-SHOCK PROTEIN IN INFERTILE FEMALE-PATIENTS AND INFLUENCE OF CHLAMYDIA-PNEUMONIAE ANTIBODIES, European journal of clinical microbiology & infectious diseases, 14(12), 1995, pp. 1063-1069
A total of 446 sera from 245 patients with primary or secondary infert
ility, all of whom were examined laparoscopically, 117 patients with C
hlamydia trachomatis-positive cervical swabs, and 84 control persons (
50 obstetric patients and 34 female blood donors) were tested for anti
bodies to Chlamydia trachomatis and to Chlamydia pneumoniae with the m
icroimmunofluorescence (MIF) test. MIF test antibody rates were highes
t in patients with complete tubal occlusion (73 %) and in patients wit
h proven Chlamydia trachomatis infection (74 %), whereas only 9 to 10
% of the control group showed Chlamydia trachomatis antibodies. Reacti
on to the 60 kDa antigen of Chlamydia trachomatis, a heat-shock protei
n (hsp) analogue, has been suggested as a possible marker for the deve
lopment of chronic sequelae after Chlamydia trachomatis infection. Imm
unoblot analysis of 222 sera (169 infertility patients, 20 antigen-pos
itive patients, and 33 mothers) showed a significantly higher anti-hsp
antibody rate in patients with complete tubal occlusion than in infer
tility patients with normal fallopian tubes (76 % vs. 19 %, p < 0.001)
. The presence of antibodies not only to Chlamydia trachomatis but als
o to Chlamydia pneumoniae in the MIF test was associated with a signif
icantly higher rate of anti-hsp antibodies and with complete tubal occ
lusion. This association did not appear to be due to cross-reactivity
between Chlamydia pneumoniae and Chlamydia trachomatis antibodies in t
he MIF test.