Abstract
No relation between the occurrence of antibodies to chlamydial agents and asthma in children was found. In asthmatic children, the antibodies to Chlamydia trachomatis occurred in 3.1% and to Chlamydophila pneumoniae in 22.7%, whereas in a control group of children without asthma or other allergic disease in 2.3% and 24.0%, respectively. The occurrence of antibodies of IgA and IgG classes to C. pneumoniae was also very similar; its rise was age-dependent. On the other hand, in the group of children in a pre-school age with respiratory tract infection, anti-chlamydial antibodies were demonstrated significantly more often (18.5% of IgG antibodies to C. trachomatis, 20.0% of IgM antibodies to both C. trachomatis and C. pneumoniae) than in those suffering from other, non-respiratory illness (3.9% of the former and 5.9% of the latter antibodies). However, in these children, we did not succeed in detection of C. trachomatis in conjunctival and nasopharyngeal smears by PCR. Nevertheless, chlamydial agents (C. trachomatis in infants, C. pneumoniae in pre-school children) should be taken into consideration in a differential diagnosis of respiratory tract inflammation.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Beem MO, Saxon EM (1977) Respiratory-tract colonization and a distinctive pneumonia syndrome in infants with Chlamydia trachomatis. N Engl J Med 296:306–310
Biasi C (1999) The role of infectious agents in the pathogenesis and evaluation of atherosclerosis. Ann Ital Med Interna 19:249–261
Blasi F, Damato S, Consentini R et al (2002) Chlamydia pneumonia and chronic bronchitis: association with severity and bacterial clearance following treatment. Thorax 57:672–676
Brandon E, Koyi H, Gnarpe J, Gnarpe H, Touling G (2005) Chronic Chlamydia pneumoniae infection is a risk factor for the development of COPD. Respir Med 99:20–26
Čisláková L, Pospíšil R, Holler J, Várady L, Prokopčáková H, Peterková J (1994) Extraurogenital evidence of Chlamydia trachomatis-perinatal transmission. Epidemiol Mikrobiol Imunol 43:111–113
Cunningham AF, Johnston SL, Julious SA, Lampe FC, Ward ME (1998) Chronic Chlamydia pneumoniae infection and asthma exacerbations in children. Eur Respir J 11:345–349
Esposito S, Principe N (2001) Asthma in children: are chlamydia or mycoplasma involved? Paediatr Drugs 3:159–168
Grayston JT, Kuo C-C, Wang S-P, Altman J (1986) A new Chlamydia psittaci strain, TWAR, isolated in acute respiratory tract infection. N Engl J Med 315:161–168
Grayston JT, Wang S-P, Kuo C-C, Campbell LA (1989) Current knowledge of Chlamydia pneumoniae, strain TWAR, an important cause of pneumonia and other acute respiratory diseases. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis 8:191–202
Hahn DL, McDonald R (1998) Can acute Chlamydia pneumoniae respiratory tract infection initiate chronic asthma? Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol 81:339–344
Hammerschlag MR (2000) The role of Chlamydia in upper respiratory tract infections. Curr Infect Dis Rep 2:115–120
Hansbro PM, Beagley KW, Horvat JC, Gibson PG (2004) Role of atypical bacterial infection of the lung in predisposition/protection of asthma. Pharmacol Ther 101:193–210
Hrubá D (2004) Value of laboratory examination in chlamydial infections. Our experience with diagnosis of chlamydial infections in children with asthma. (In Czech) Klin Imunol Alergol 14:11
Johnston S, Martin R (2005) Chlamydia pneumoniae and Mycoplasma pneumoniae: a role in asthma pathogenesis. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 172:1078–1089
Kováčová E, Kazár J (2000) Participation of Chlamydia pneumoniae in an epidemic of respiratory infection in Slovakia. Cent Eur J Public Health 8:169–171
Kutlin A, Roblin PM, Hammeschlag MR (1998) Antibody response to Chlamydia pneumoniae infection in children with respiratory illness. J Infect Dis 177:720–724
Novotná B (2004) Atypical bacteria and asthma. (In Czech) Klin Imunol Alergol 14:9
Papaetis GS, Anostakou E, Orphanidou D (2009) Chlamydia pneumoniae infection and COPD: more evidence for lack of evidence? Eur J Intern Med 20:579–585
Pasternack R, Huhtala H, Karjalainen J (2005) Chlamydophila (Chlamydia) pneumoniae serology and asthma in adults: a longitudinal analysis. J Allergy Clin Immunol 116:1123–1128
Routes JM, Nelson HS, Noda JA, Simon FT (2000) Lack of correlation between Chlamydia pneumoniae antibody titers and adult-onset asthma. J Allergy Clin Immunol 105:391–392
Saikku P, Ruutu P, Leinonen M, Panelius J, Tupasi TE, Grayston JT (1988) Acute lower-respiratory tract infection associated with chlamydial TWAR antibody in Filipino children. J Infect Dis 158:1095–1097
Acknowledgment
This work was supported by the Ministry of Health of the Slovak Republic (project no. 2006/10-SZU-05).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kazár, J., Kováčová, E., Gašparovič, J. et al. Antibody response to chlamydiae in children with asthma and respiratory illness. Folia Microbiol 56, 155–158 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12223-011-0021-5
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12223-011-0021-5