title: Effects of Helicobacter pylori vacuolating cytotoxin on primary cultures of human gastric epithelial cells.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Many Helicobacter pylori strains produce a cytotoxin that induces cytoplasmic vacuolation in various types of eukaryotic cells. In contrast with the marked cell vacuolation that occurs in vitro in response to this cytotoxin, comparatively little epithelial vacuolation has been observed in the gastric mucosa of H pylori infected persons.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  Experiments were performed to determine the susceptibility of human gastric epithelial cells in vitro to H pylori vacuolating cytotoxin activity.
  
  
  METHODS
  Human gastric epithelial cells, harvested from upper gastrointestinal endoscopic biopsy specimens, were incubated overnight with broth culture supernatants from either a wild type cytotoxin producing (tox+) H pylori strain or an isogenic mutant strain that lacks cytotoxin activity.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Prominent cytoplasmic vacuolation occurred in response to tox+ supernatant, but not supernatant from the isogenic mutant strain. Primary human gastric epithelial cells were significantly more sensitive to H pylori vacuolating cytotoxin activity than were either HeLa or AGS cells. Exposure of human gastric epithelial cells to high concentrations of tox+ supernatant for 48 hours caused lethal cell injury.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These studies indicate that primary human gastric epithelial cells are highly sensitive to H pylori vacuolating cytotoxin activity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Howard University College of Medicine, Washington, DC, USA.
authors.forename: D T
authors.initials: DT
authors.lastname: Smoot
authors.forename: J H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Resau
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Earlington
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Simpson
authors.forename: T L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Cover
mesh_terms: D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002460:Cell Line; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003603:Cytotoxins / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004848:Epithelium / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D005753:Gastric Mucosa / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology; D006367:HeLa Cells; D016480:Helicobacter pylori; D006801:Humans; D014617:Vacuoles / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D003603:Cytotoxins; C074689:VacA protein, Helicobacter pylori