Myocardial infarction, commonly known as heart attacks, may also be triggered by infectious diseases, finds a study, which showed that dormant bacteria can cause the deadly condition.The pioneering study by researchers from Finland and the UK demonstrated that the discovery challenges the conventional understanding of the pathogenesis of heart attacks and opens new avenues for treatment, diagnostics, and even vaccine development.
Professor Pekka Karhunen, from Tampere University in Finland, who led the study, notes that until now, it was assumed that events leading to coronary artery disease were only initiated by oxidised low-density lipoprotein (LDL), which the body recognises as a foreign structure.
“Bacterial involvement in coronary artery disease has long been suspected, but direct and convincing evidence has been lacking,” Karhunen added.
The study, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, revealed that an infection may trigger myocardial infarction.
Using a range of advanced methodologies, the research found that, in coronary artery disease, atherosclerotic plaques containing cholesterol may harbour a gelatinous, asymptomatic biofilm formed by bacteria over years or even decades.
Dormant bacteria within the biofilm remain shielded from both the patient’s immune system and antibiotics because they cannot penetrate the biofilm matrix.
A viral infection or another external trigger may activate the biofilm, leading to the proliferation of bacteria and an inflammatory response.