Establishment of Porphyromonas gingivalis-specific T-cell lines from atherosclerosis patients.

Porphyromonas gingivalis-specific T-cell lines were established from atherosclerotic lesions from two patients. T-cell lines were found to be a mixture of CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells producing variable amount of interferon-gamma, interleukin-4 and interleukin-10. The two patients have had a periodontal disease whose anti-P. gingivalis immunoglobulin G titers were significantly elevated, and P. gingivalis was the one of the predominantly cultivable microorganisms. This is the first report of the successful establishment of P. gingivalis-specific T-cell lines from atherosclerotic patients.