Dr. Mohamed Elashiry: Enterococcus faecalis in Chronic Infections: Disease Persistence and Macrophage Immunity Aberration

I will discuss the role of Enterococcus faecalis in systemic diseases, some of which may be morbid and cause mortality. Then I will delve into the role of E. faecalis in the persistence of chronic apical infections, highlighting the prevalence and the resistance to eradication during root canal treatment. The possible connection between oral and systemic diseases and how these oral infections may possess a risk if not treated will bring the most important question, why do the host-bacterial interactions always favor bacterial survival? To answer this, I will discuss the role of macrophages in chronic infections and wound healing, then how E. faecalis impairs dendritic cells and induces immune-aberrant macrophages with inhibition in M1-M2 plasticity, which is an important aspect in wound healing. I will end by stating that the ability of bacteria to maintain the vitality of defective immune cells and the biofilms’ presence in tumors may explain the persistence of these mutated cells.