Helicobacter pylori Infection and Host Defense Mechanism

A special issue of Microorganisms (ISSN 2076-2607). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Microbiology and Immunology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2021) | Viewed by 16727

Special Issue Editor

Dipartimento di Medicina Molecolare e Biotecnologie Mediche, Università degli Studi di Napoli “Federico II”, 80131 Napoli, Italy
Interests: microbiology; human defensins; Helicobacter pylori; microbiome; genomics; epigetics; cell biology; cancer biology; gene regulation
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is a Gram-negative microaerophilic spiral bacterium previously known as Campylobacter pylori. Since the discovery of H. pylori as a pathogenic infectious agent in humans, it has been linked to different gastric diseases in humans (gastritis, peptic ulcers, gastric adenocarcinoma, and MALT lymphoma).

It colonizes the gastrointestinal mucosa of its host, and in spite of a strong persistent humoral and cellular immune response to H. pylori at the local and systemic level, the organism persists for the lifetime of its host.

The study of the host defense mechanisms factors of the bacteria is key to detection of the molecular and cellular pathways involved and will lead to developing preventive and therapeutic modules in which antibiotic eradication provides a clinical benefit, mainly for gastric diseases.

The increase in the use of antimicrobial therapy has driven to the development and emergence of resistance to the antibiotics used, which leads to a public health problem.

The aim of this Special Issue is to update the biological and clinical concepts of the H. pylori infection.

We warmly invite you to submit your research articles, reviews, and short communications related to the different aspects of H. pylori infection and host defense mechanism: epidemiology, clinical complications, pathogenesis, environmental factors, host genetic susceptibility and immune profile, pattern recognition receptors, cytokines, diagnosis, prevention, and therapy.

Dr. Raffaela Pero
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • Helicobacter pylori 
  • Virulence factors 
  • Pathogenicity 
  • Human infections 
  • Host–pathogen interactions 
  • Microbiology
  • Antibiotics
  • Antibiotic resistance

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

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16 pages, 1561 KiB  
Article
Laryngeal Helicobacter pylori Infection and Laryngeal Cancer-Case Series and a Systematic Review
by Li-Jen Hsin, Hai-Hua Chuang, Mu-Yun Lin, Tuan-Jen Fang, Hsueh-Yu Li, Chun-Ta Liao, Chung-Jan Kang, Tse-Ching Chen, Chung-Guei Huang, Tzu-Chen Yen and Li-Ang Lee
Microorganisms 2021, 9(6), 1129; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/microorganisms9061129 - 23 May 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3003
Abstract
Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection involves the development of gastric cancer and may be associated with laryngeal cancer. However, laryngeal H. pylori infection in Taiwanese patients with newly diagnosed laryngeal cancer has not been reported. This study was aimed to investigate [...] Read more.
Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection involves the development of gastric cancer and may be associated with laryngeal cancer. However, laryngeal H. pylori infection in Taiwanese patients with newly diagnosed laryngeal cancer has not been reported. This study was aimed to investigate the possible association between laryngeal H. pylori infection and laryngeal cancer in Taiwan and perform a systematic review of previous reports in other countries. An analysis of 105 patients with laryngeal lesions found the positive rates of H. pylori DNA (determined by polymerase chain reaction) and antigen (determined by immunohistochemistry) of the laryngeal lesions were relatively low (vocal polyps: 3% and 3%; vocal fold leukoplakia: 0% and 0%; laryngeal cancers: 0% and 2%). Furthermore, H. pylori-associated laryngopharyngeal reflux and the expression of E-cadherin and CD1d (determined by immunohistochemistry) were comparable among the three subgroups. Fifteen studies were involved in the systematic review of the digital literature database, distributed to February 2021. The data of patients with laryngeal cancer and controls showed that the laryngeal H. pylori infection rates were 29.4% and 16.7%, respectively. Although current evidence supported that laryngeal H. pylori infection was associated with laryngeal cancer globally, it might not play a role in the development of laryngeal cancer in Taiwan. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Helicobacter pylori Infection and Host Defense Mechanism)
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13 pages, 518 KiB  
Article
Efficacy of Helicobacter pylori Eradication Therapy on Platelet Recovery in Pediatric Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura-Case Series and a Systematic Review
by Tamaki Ikuse, Masanori Toda, Kosuke Kashiwagi, Kimiko Maruyama, Masumi Nagata, Kaori Tokushima, Natsuki Ito, Kazuhide Tokita, Reiko Kyodo, Kenji Hosoi, Keisuke Jimbo, Takahiro Kudo and Toshiaki Shimizu
Microorganisms 2020, 8(10), 1457; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/microorganisms8101457 - 23 Sep 2020
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2298
Abstract
Evidence relating to the efficacy of Helicobacter pylori eradication therapy for chronic immune thrombocytopenic purpura (cITP) in childhood is inadequate. The aim of this retrospective study was to determine the efficacy of H. pylori eradication therapy for platelet response in pediatric patients with [...] Read more.
Evidence relating to the efficacy of Helicobacter pylori eradication therapy for chronic immune thrombocytopenic purpura (cITP) in childhood is inadequate. The aim of this retrospective study was to determine the efficacy of H. pylori eradication therapy for platelet response in pediatric patients with cITP in our hospital, and to perform a systematic review of previous reports about pediatric patients with cITP who were positive for H. pylori infection and were treated with H. pylori eradication therapy. Analysis of the data of pediatric patients with cITP in our hospital and a systematic review of digital literature databases of studies in pediatric patients with cITP were performed. Data of 33 pediatric patients with cITP from our hospital records showed that the prevalence of H. pylori infection and the rate of response to platelet therapy were 15% and 33.3%, respectively. Data of 706 pediatric patients from 18 previous reports showed that the prevalence of H. pylori infection and rate of platelet response were 23% and 43.8%, respectively. Eradication therapy for H. pylori infection in pediatric cITP patients can be expected to result in a response equivalent to that in the adult population, with fewer adverse effects than other treatments for cITP. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Helicobacter pylori Infection and Host Defense Mechanism)
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19 pages, 5396 KiB  
Article
Cooperative Regulation of Campylobacter jejuni Heat-Shock Genes by HspR and HrcA
by Marta Palombo, Vincenzo Scarlato and Davide Roncarati
Microorganisms 2020, 8(8), 1161; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/microorganisms8081161 - 30 Jul 2020
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2421
Abstract
The heat-shock response is defined by the transient gene-expression program that leads to the rapid accumulation of heat-shock proteins. This evolutionary conserved response aims at the preservation of the intracellular environment and represents a crucial pathway during the establishment of host–pathogen interaction. In [...] Read more.
The heat-shock response is defined by the transient gene-expression program that leads to the rapid accumulation of heat-shock proteins. This evolutionary conserved response aims at the preservation of the intracellular environment and represents a crucial pathway during the establishment of host–pathogen interaction. In the food-borne pathogen Campylobacter jejuni two transcriptional repressors, named HspR and HrcA, are involved in the regulation of the major heat-shock genes. However, the molecular mechanism underpinning HspR and HrcA regulatory function has not been defined yet. In the present work, we assayed and mapped the HspR and HrcA interactions on heat-shock promoters by high-resolution DNase I footprintings, defining their regulatory circuit, which governs C. jejuni heat-shock response. We found that, while DNA-binding of HrcA covers a compact region enclosing a single inverted repeat similar to the so-called Controlling Inverted Repeat of Chaperone Expression (CIRCE) sequence, HspR interacts with multiple high- and low-affinity binding sites, which contain HspR Associated Inverted Repeat (HAIR)-like sequences. We also explored the DNA-binding properties of the two repressors competitively on their common targets and observed, for the first time, that HrcA and HspR can directly interact and their binding on co-regulated promoters occurs in a cooperative manner. This mutual cooperative mechanism of DNA binding could explain the synergic repressive effect of HspR and HrcA observed in vivo on co-regulated promoters. Peculiarities of the molecular mechanisms exerted by HspR and HrcA in C. jejuni are compared to the closely related bacterium H. pylori that uses homologues of the two regulators. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Helicobacter pylori Infection and Host Defense Mechanism)
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11 pages, 1969 KiB  
Article
Cysteine Residues in Helicobacter pylori Adhesin HopQ Are Required for CEACAM–HopQ Interaction and Subsequent CagA Translocation
by Youssef Hamway, Karin Taxauer, Kristof Moonens, Victoria Neumeyer, Wolfgang Fischer, Verena Schmitt, Bernhard B. Singer, Han Remaut, Markus Gerhard and Raquel Mejías-Luque
Microorganisms 2020, 8(4), 465; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/microorganisms8040465 - 25 Mar 2020
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 3243
Abstract
Attachment to the host gastric mucosa is a key step in Helicobacter pylori infection. Recently, a novel adhesin, HopQ, was shown to bind distinct host CEACAM proteins—an interaction that was found to be essential for the translocation of CagA, a key virulence factor [...] Read more.
Attachment to the host gastric mucosa is a key step in Helicobacter pylori infection. Recently, a novel adhesin, HopQ, was shown to bind distinct host CEACAM proteins—an interaction that was found to be essential for the translocation of CagA, a key virulence factor of H. pylori. The HopQ–CEACAM1 co-crystal structure revealed a binding mode dependent on loops in HopQ that are clasped by disulfide bonds. In this study, we investigated the importance of these cysteine residues for CEACAM1 engagement by H. pylori. We observed a loss of CEACAM1 binding and CagA translocation upon disruption of the disulfide bond in loop CL1 (connecting C103 to C132 in HopQ). Deletion of the Dsb-like oxidoreductase HP0231 did not affect cell surface expression of HopQ or alter the interaction of H. pylori with target cells. Although HP0231 deletion was previously described to impede CagA translocation, our results indicate that this occurs through a HopQ-independent mechanism. Together, our results open up new avenues to therapeutically target the HopQ–CEACAM1 interaction and reduce the burden of pathogenic H. pylori. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Helicobacter pylori Infection and Host Defense Mechanism)
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12 pages, 1838 KiB  
Article
Evolutionarily-Related Helicobacter pylori Genotypes and Gastric Intraepithelial Neoplasia in a High-Risk Area of Northern Italy
by Sonia Toracchio, Rosario Alberto Caruso, Silvia Perconti, Luciana Rigoli, Enrico Betri, Matteo Neri, Fabio Verginelli and Renato Mariani-Costantini
Microorganisms 2020, 8(3), 324; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/microorganisms8030324 - 26 Feb 2020
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1963
Abstract
Helicobacter pylori (Hp) is the major recognized risk factor for non-cardia gastric cancer (GC), but only a fraction of infected subjects develop GC, thus GC risk might reflect other genetic/environmental cofactors and/or differences in virulence among infectious Hp strains. Focusing on [...] Read more.
Helicobacter pylori (Hp) is the major recognized risk factor for non-cardia gastric cancer (GC), but only a fraction of infected subjects develop GC, thus GC risk might reflect other genetic/environmental cofactors and/or differences in virulence among infectious Hp strains. Focusing on a high GC risk area of Northern Italy (Cremona, Lombardy) and using archived paraffin-embedded biopsies, we investigated the associations between the Hp vacA and cagA genotype variants and gastric intraepithelial neoplasia (GIN, 33 cases) versus non-neoplastic gastroduodenal lesions (NNGDLs, 37 cases). The glmM gene and the cagA and vacA (s and m) genotypes were determined by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing. Hp was confirmed in 37/37 (100%) NNGDLs and detected in 9/33 GINs (27%), consistently with the well-known Hp loss in GC. CagA was detected in 4/9 Hp-positive GINs and in 29/37 NNGDLs. The vacA s1a and m1 subtypes were more common in GINs than in NNGDLs (6/7 vs. 12/34, p=0.014, for s1a; 7/7 vs. 18/34, p=0.020 for m1), with significant vacA s genotype-specific variance. The GIN-associated vacA s1a sequences clustered together, suggesting that aggressive Hp strains from a unique founder contribute to GC in the high-risk area studied. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Helicobacter pylori Infection and Host Defense Mechanism)
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Review

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16 pages, 1916 KiB  
Review
Association between Active Helicobacter pylori Infection and Glaucoma: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
by Michael Doulberis, Apostolis Papaefthymiou, Stergios A. Polyzos, Panagiotis Bargiotas, Christos Liatsos, David Shiva Srivastava, Christos Zavos, Panagiotis Katsinelos and Jannis Kountouras
Microorganisms 2020, 8(6), 894; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/microorganisms8060894 - 13 Jun 2020
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 3006
Abstract
Background: Glaucoma is the second most common cause of blindness worldwide affecting almost 70 million individuals. Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is a widespread pathogen with systematic pathogenicity. This meta-analysis aimed to estimate the contradictory data regarding a potential association between active H. pylori [...] Read more.
Background: Glaucoma is the second most common cause of blindness worldwide affecting almost 70 million individuals. Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is a widespread pathogen with systematic pathogenicity. This meta-analysis aimed to estimate the contradictory data regarding a potential association between active H. pylori infection and glaucoma. Materials and Methods: A research in MEDLINE/PubMed and Google Scholar was conducted and original studies investigating the relationship between H. pylori infection and glaucoma were included. Analysis was performed with random effects model. The main outcome was the odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) of H. pylori infection as a risk factor for glaucoma. A parallel analysis studied the role of active infection as indicated by histology and the titer of anti-H. pylori antibodies. For the anti-H. pylori antibody titers, weighted mean differences (WMD) were estimated between patients and controls. Results: Fifteen studies were included, with 2664 participants (872 patients with glaucoma and 1792 controls), divided into primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG), normal tension glaucoma (NTG) and pseudo-exfoliation glaucoma (PEG). The association between H. pylori infection and overall glaucoma was significant (OR = 2.08, CI 95% 1.48–2.93) with moderate heterogeneity (I2 = 61.54%). After stratification by glaucoma subtype, heterogeneity was eliminated in the NTG subgroup. Studies with healthy controls, and controls with anemia yielded very low or no heterogeneity, respectively. Gastric biopsy to document active H. pylori infection yielded the highest OR (5.4, CI: 3.17–9.2, p < 0.001) and null heterogeneity. For anti-H. pylori antibody titers, there was a significant difference in WMD between patients and controls (WMD 15.98 IU/mL; 95% CI: 4.09–27.87; p = 0.008); values were greater in glaucoma patients, with high heterogeneity (I2: 93.8%). Meta-regression analysis showed that mean age had a significant impact on glaucoma (p = 0.037). Conclusions: Active H. pylori infection may be associated with glaucoma with null heterogeneity, as, beyond histology, quantified by anti-H. pylori titers and increases with age. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Helicobacter pylori Infection and Host Defense Mechanism)
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