Helicobacter pylori: A Beneficial Gastric Pathogen?

Frontiers in Medicine

Amin Talebi Bezmin Abadi¹ 

关键词: Helicobacter pylori;    pathogen;    digestive diseases;    human gastric mucosa;    colonization;    GERD;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fmed.2014.00026

学科分类：医学（综合）

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

Since Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is the first successful culture three decades ago, ongoing perspectives regarding the relationship between the bacterium and human health have changed radically (1, 2). Apart from tremendous studies performed during the last years, there are still many debates regarding the unclear rationale for existence of such bacteria in human stomach (3, 4). Basically, due to the beneficiary effects of H. pylori colonization (regression in child asthma and other allergic disorders), it has been concluded that H. pylori is a common flora or at least harmless bacterium (5–10), Conversely, because of the causative role of H. pylori in certain digestive diseases such as duodenal ulcer and gastric cancer, other reports are quite contradictory (11–13). A large number of discussions led to a consensus regarding presence of H. pylori in the human stomach (5, 11, 14, 15). Our knowledge about biology of H. pylori suggests that the bacterium is highly adapted to stay in gastric mucosa for long time (1, 16). Indeed, living in lower surface of gastric mucosa, with no bacterial competition, provided a novel place to survive. Moreover, H. pylori is able to multiply freely due to the protective effects by mucosal layer. Thus, H. pylori had an opportunity to thrive in stomach over the course of tens of thousands of years of co-evolution with humans (17). Additionally, the high frequency of mutation in the genome also led to higher chances of survival, and natural selection helped them to remain and cause chronic infection (18). Determining whether H. pylori is beneficial or detrimental in human stomach has been a challenging area of research in gastroenterology (5, 11, 19, 20). In this article, we aim to elucidate various aspects of this persistent colonization of this beneficial infection.

【 授权许可】

CC BY