Chlamydia bacteria may cause heart disease

New research from the Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto suggests that we may be able to "catch" heart disease the same way we catch a cold.

The scientists say they've proven a link between heart disease and the bacteria Chlamydia.

The bacteria is common and is most often spread like a cold, by coughing and sneezing. Almost everyone will catch it some time in their lives. It's also the same bacteria that causes the sexually-transmitted disease of the same name.

The findings were published Friday in the journal, Science.

The researchers used mice to find that Chlamydia mimics a heart protein. As the body tries to fight off the foreign bacteria, the immune system also attacks heart cells, damaging the heart.

The findings seem to answer the riddle about why healthy people with none of the traditional heart disease risk factors--like smoking or obesity--develop the disease. They also raise questions about whether a lack of exercise and a poor diet can determine who will suffer a future heart attack.

Further research may lead to the developments of antibiotics or a vaccine to prevent Chlamydia from causing heart disease.