Inflammatory response of disc cells against Propionibacterium acnes depends on the presence of lumbar Modic changes.
Stefan DudliS MillerS Demir-DevirenJ C LotzPublished in: European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society (2017)
Disc cell responsiveness to P. acnes associates with the presence of lumbar Modic changes. Furthermore, bone marrow cells had an inflammatory response to the cocktail of disc cytokines and P. acnes metabolites. These data indicate that low virulent P. acnes infection of the disc is a potential exacerbating factor to Modic changes.