Nature Communications (Mar 2019)

Chronic Chlamydia infection in human organoids increases stemness and promotes age-dependent CpG methylation

  • Mirjana Kessler,
  • Karen Hoffmann,
  • Kristin Fritsche,
  • Volker Brinkmann,
  • Hans-Joachim Mollenkopf,
  • Oliver Thieck,
  • Ana Rita Teixeira da Costa,
  • Elena I. Braicu,
  • Jalid Sehouli,
  • Mandy Mangler,
  • Hilmar Berger,
  • Thomas F. Meyer

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-09144-7
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 10, no. 1
pp. 1 – 14

Abstract

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Chronic infections of the fallopian tubes with Chlamydia trachomatis can cause scarring and infertility. Here, the authors show that the pathogen alters stem cell differentiation and DNA methylation in human fallopian tube organoids, suggesting a potential link to cellular ageing and malignant transformation.