Tannerella forsythia was discovered by and named after Anne Tanner, who works at The Forsyth Institute located in Cambridge, Massachusetts.[7]
T. forsythia has been identified in atherosclerotic lesions. Lee et al. found that infecting mice with T. forsythia induced foam cell formation and accelerated the formation of atherosclerotic lesions.[8] It has also been isolated from women with bacterial vaginosis.[9] The presence of oral T. forsythia has been found to be associated with an increased risk of esophageal cancer.[10]
^Cionca N, Giannopoulou C, Ugolotti G, Mombelli A (January 2010). "Microbiologic testing and outcomes of full-mouth scaling and root planing with or without amoxicillin/metronidazole in chronic periodontitis". Journal of Periodontology. 81 (1): 15–23. doi:10.1902/jop.2009.090390. PMID20059413.