title: Concentrations of alpha- and beta-defensins in gastric juice of patients with various gastroduodenal diseases.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the concentration of alpha- and beta-defensins in gastric juice of patients with various gastroduodenal diseases.
  
  
  METHODS
  Concentrations of human neutrophil peptides (HNPs) 1-3, the major forms of alpha-defensins, and human beta-defensin (HBD)-1 and HBD-2 were measured by radioimmunoassay in plasma and gastric juice of 84 subjects, consisting of 54 Helicobacter pylori-infected and 30 uninfected subjects. They included 33 patients with chronic gastritis (CG), 12 with gastric ulcer (GU), 11 with duodenal ulcer (DU), 11 with benign gastric polyp (BGP) and 16 with normal mucosa (N group) on upper endoscopy. Plasma pepsinogen I and II levels, biomarkers for gastric mucosal inflammation and atrophy, were also measured.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Gastric juice HNPs 1-3 levels in patients with CG, GU and BGP were significantly higher than those in patients with DU and N. Gastric juice HBD-2 concentrations in patients with CG and GU were significantly higher than those in the N group, but were significantly lower in DU patients than in GU patients. Gastric juice HBD-1 levels and plasma levels of these peptides were similar in the patient groups. Concentrations of gastric juice HNPs 1-3 and HBD-2 of in H pylori-infected patients were significantly different from those in uninfected subjects. HNPs 1-3 concentrations in gastric juice correlated negatively with plasma pepsinogen I levels and I/II ratios. HBD-2 levels in gastric juice correlated positively and negatively with plasma pepsinogen II concentrations and I/II ratios, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  HNPs 1-3 and HBD-2 levels in gastric juice are diverse among various gastrointestinal diseases, reflecting the inflammatory and atrophic events of the background gastric mucosa affected by H pylori.
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Nagasaki University School of Medicine, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshito
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nishi
authors.forename: Hajime
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Isomoto
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mukae
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ishimoto
authors.forename: Chun-Yang
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Wen
authors.forename: Akihiro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wada
authors.forename: Ken
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ohnita
authors.forename: Yohei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mizuta
authors.forename: Ikuo
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Murata
authors.forename: Toshiya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hirayama
authors.forename: Masamitsu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nakazato
authors.forename: Shigeru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kohno
mesh_terms: D004378:Duodenal Diseases / Q000378:metabolism*; D005750:Gastric Juice / Q000378:metabolism*; D005755:Gastrins / Q000097:blood; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000378:metabolism; D016480:Helicobacter pylori; D006801:Humans; D020116:Pepsinogen A / Q000097:blood; D013272:Stomach Diseases / Q000378:metabolism*; D023084:alpha-Defensins / Q000378:metabolism*; D023083:beta-Defensins / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: C406407:DEFB1 protein, human; C106641:DEFB4A protein, human; D005755:Gastrins; D023084:alpha-Defensins; D023083:beta-Defensins; C406413:human neutrophil peptide 1; C406416:human neutrophil peptide 2; C406427:human neutrophil peptide 3; D020116:Pepsinogen A