Profile of Helicobacter pylori cytotoxin derived from two areas of Japan with different prevalence of atrophic gastritis.
OBJECTIVE
To clarify the roles of Helicobacter pylori cytotoxin in gastric atrophy, the cytotoxin positive rate and cytotoxin activity in Fukui and Okinawa, where the prevalence of atrophic gastritis and gastric cancer risk are quite different, were studied.


METHODS
Seventy three strains from Fukui and 51 from Okinawa were examined.


METHODS
The validation of atrophy was done by endoscopy, being confirmed with histology. The supernatant of liquid H pylori culture media was concentrated 20-fold, serially diluted, using doubling dilutions, and scored from 1 to 8. The semi-quantitated cytotoxin activity was expressed as the maximum dilution score yielding > 50% A431 cell vacuolation, being standardised with bacterial density.


RESULTS
The cytotoxin activity of the strains from Fukui was highly diverse compared with that from Okinawa, although the cytotoxin positive rate was not different. In Fukui strains, the grade of atrophy and the cytotoxin activity were correlated (p < 0.05). In addition, the cytotoxin activity of the strains from all patients in Okinawa, most of whom showed closed-type/mild atrophy, was significantly lower than that of the strains from the patients with open-type/severe atrophy in Fukui (6.46 (5.53) v 9.76 (8.80), p < 0.05), (mean (SEM)).


CONCLUSIONS
The difference in profile of the cytotoxin activity in the two areas was related to the difference in the prevalence of atrophic gastritis.
Ito
S
S
Second Department of Internal Medicine, Fukui Medical School, Japan.
Azuma
T
T
Murakita
H
H
Hirai
M
M
Miyaji
H
H
Ito
Y
Y
Ohtaki
Y
Y
Yamazaki
Y
Y
Kuriyama
M
M
Keida
Y
Y
Kohli
Y
Y
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D003603:Cytotoxins / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D005260:Female; D005753:Gastric Mucosa / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D005757:Gastritis, Atrophic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D005773:Gastroscopy; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology; D016480:Helicobacter pylori / Q000145:classification / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D014617:Vacuoles / Q000473:pathology
D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D003603:Cytotoxins; C074689:VacA protein, Helicobacter pylori