Anticardiolipin (aCL) in sera from periodontitis subjects activate Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)

Anticardiolipin antibodies (aCL) have been reported to be present in 15–20% of sera from subjects with periodontitis at concentrations exceeding those found in 95% of the healthy adult population. These antibodies, albeit at concentrations exceeding those generally found in periodontitis subjects, are typically present in patients with the antiphospholipid syndrome (APS), an autoimmune disease characterized by thrombosis and recurrent pregnancy loss. aCL from APS patients are proinflammatory and can activate trophoblasts, macrophages, and platelets via cell-surface interactions with their target antigen beta-2-glycoprotein-I (β2GPI). β2GPI is an anionic phospholipid-binding serum protein that can associate with toll-like receptors (TLR’s) on the cell-surface, leading to cell activation following interaction with autoimmune aCL. We examined an expanded series of 629 sera from clinically characterized subjects for aCL content, and observed that 14–19% of these sera contained elevated (>95(th) %-tile) levels of aCL. We purified IgG from 16 subjects with elevated or normal levels of aCL and examined their ability to activate TLR2- or TLR4-transfected human embryonic kidney (HEK) cells, and observed that IgG from periodontitis patients with elevated aCL activated HEK-TLR4 cells, but not HEK-TLR2 cells. Prior removal of aCL by immunoabsorption significantly reduced the ability of IgG preparations from these sera to activate TLR4. Further experiments using a human first trimester trophoblastic cell line (HTR8 sv/neo) revealed that aCL from periodontitis patients stimulated IL-8 production, which was profoundly decreased if aCL was removed by immunoabsorption or if HTR8 sv/neo were pretreated with blocking anti-TLR4 antibodies. Thus, it appears that aCL from periodontitis patients can be proinflammatory, activating cells via TLR4. Since these antibodies are likely produced via molecular mimicry due to similarities between oral bacterial antigens and β2GPI, the data indicate that circulating serum aCL may induce or influence inflammatory responses at sites distant from the oral cavity.