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Heart Attacks May Be Infectious and Vaccines Could Prevent Them
Heart attacks may be infectious, driven by hidden microbes in the arteries.
Credit: Shutterstock Hidden bacterial biofilms can lurk silently inside arterial plaques for decades, shielded from the immune system, until a viral illness or other trigger awakens them. Professor Pekka Karhunen, the study’s lead author, explains that until now it was widely believed that coronary artery disease was primarily driven by oxidised low-density lipoprotein (LDL), which the body identifies as a foreign substance. Reference: “Viridans Streptococcal Biofilm Evades Immune Detection and Contributes to Inflammation and Rupture of Atherosclerotic Plaques” by Pekka J. Karhunen, Tanja Pessi, Sohvi Hörkkö, Vesa Karhunen, Sirkka Goebeler, Anne‐Mari Louhelainen, Mika Martiskainen, Teppo Haapaniemi, Johanna Lappeteläinen, Tommi Ijäs, Leo‐Pekka Lyytikäinen, Emma Raitoharju, Thanos Sioris, Sari Tuomisto, Heini Huhtala, Chunguang Wang, Claudia Monaco, Niku Oksala, Terho Lehtimäki and Reijo Laaksonen, 6 August 2025, Journal of the American Heart Association.
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