Expert Reviews in Molecular Medicine: http://www.expertreviews.org/
DOI: 10.1017/S1462399406000160; 30 November 2006
Robert H. Swanborg, Dov L. Boros, Judith A. Whittum-Hudson and Alan P. Hudson (2006) Molecular mimicry and horror autotoxicus: do chlamydial infections elicit autoimmunity? Expert Rev. Mol. Med. Vol. 8, Issue 29, DOI: 10.1017/S1462399406000160

Molecular mimicry and horror autotoxicus: do chlamydial infections elicit autoimmunity?

Robert H. Swanborg ^a1, Dov L. Boros ^a1, Judith A. Whittum-Hudson ^a1 and Alan P. Hudson ^{a1 c1}

^a1 Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI 48201, USA.

^c1 Corresponding author: Alan P. Hudson, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Gordon H. Scott Hall, 540 East Canfield Ave, Detroit, MI 48201, USA. Tel: +1 313 993 6641; Fax: +1 313 577 1155; E-mail: ahudson@med.wayne.edu

All species of the order Chlamydiales are obligate intracellular eubacterial pathogens of their various hosts. Two chlamydial species, Chlamydia trachomatis and Chlamydia pneumoniae, are primarily human pathogens, and each is known to cause important diseases. Some strains of C. trachomatis are sexually transmitted and frequently cause severe reproductive problems, primarily in women. Other strains of the organism serve as the aetiological agents for blinding trachoma, still the leading cause of preventable blindness in underdeveloped nations. C. pneumoniae is a respiratory pathogen known to cause community-acquired pneumonia. Importantly, both organisms engender an immunopathogenic response in the human host, and both have been associated with widely diverse, relatively common and currently idiopathic chronic diseases, most of which include an important autoimmune component. In this article, we explore the available experimental data regarding the possible elicitation of autoimmunity in various contexts by chlamydial infection, and we suggest several avenues for research to explore this potentially important issue further.

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