Relationship between pathogenesis of Guillain-Barre syndrome and Penner's serotypes of Campylobacter jejuni.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the relationship between the pathogenesis of Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) and Campylobacter jejuni (C. jejuni) in China.


METHODS
C. jejuni strains were isolated from fresh stools of 47 GBS patients in Beijing area from 1995 to 1997 by modified Skirrow's method. Serotyping of C. jejuni was performed with Penner's method in 47 GBS patients and 171 patients with C. jejuni enteritis in our hospital during the same period. The stools from which no C. jejuni strains could be isolated were typed by PCR-RFLP (restriction fragment length polymorphism) method.


RESULTS
Six C. jejuni strains were isolated by Skirrow's method, including 3 strains of Penner serotype 2, 1 Penner serotype 4, 1 Penner serotype 19 and 1 Penner serotype 26. Three strains of DNA-I, which was equal to the same type of Penner serotype 19, were found by PCR-RFLP method.


CONCLUSIONS
C. jejuni isolated from Beijing area are similar to those reported in literature, which once more confirms the molecular mimicry pathogenetic theory of GBS caused by C. jejuni infection in China. The similarities of serotypes between C. jejuni strains from GBS patients and those from C. jejuni enteritis patients may explain the high incidence of GBS following C. jejuni infection in China.
Li
H
H
Department of Neurology, First Hospital of Beijing Medical University, Beijing 100034, China. lhf@public.east.net.cn
Yuan
J
J
Shen
B
B
Sun
X
X
Hao
H
H
D002169:Campylobacter Infections; D016123:Campylobacter jejuni / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D020275:Guillain-Barre Syndrome / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D012703:Serotyping