Five-year follow-up study of mother-to-child transmission of Helicobacter pylori infection detected by a random amplified polymorphic DNA fingerprinting method.
Recent studies have speculated on the possible role of the mother in transmitting Helicobacter pylori infection to their children. In an attempt to either prove or disprove this supposition, we investigated the rates of infection of children born to H. pylori-positive mothers from birth to 5 years of age using serology and the stool antigen test. When infection of the children did occur, the strains from the children were compared to those of their mothers using DNA analysis. Sixty-nine of the 350 pregnant mothers (19.7%) had a positive serology for H. pylori. Fifty-one children underwent serological examinations and stool antigen tests at 4 to 6 days after birth, followed by 1, 3, and 6 months. They were continuously given the stool antigen test at 4- to 6-month intervals until the age of 5 years. Gastric juice samples were collected from the infected children and their mothers for culture and DNA analyses using a random amplified polymorphic DNA fingerprinting method. None of the 51 children acquired H. pylori infection during the first year of life. Of the 44 children enrolled in a 5-year follow-up study, five (11%) acquired H. pylori infection. They acquired the infection at the age of 1 year 2 months, 1 year 3 months, 1 year 6 months, 1 year 8 months, and 4 years 4 months. Random amplified polymorphic DNA fingerprinting confirmed that the strains of the five children exhibited DNA fingerprinting patterns identical to those of their mothers. These findings suggest that mother-to-child transmission is the most probable cause of intrafamilial spread of H. pylori.
Konno
Mutsuko
M
Department of Pediatrics, Sapporo Medical University, Sapporo, Japan. mutsukon@ja-hokkaidoukouseiren.or.jp
Fujii
Nobuhiro
N
Yokota
Shin-ichi
S
Sato
Kiyoshi
K
Takahashi
Michiko
M
Sato
Kohei
K
Mino
Emi
E
Sugiyama
Toshiro
T
D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood; D001483:Base Sequence; D016172:DNA Fingerprinting; D017931:DNA Primers; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000635:transmission*; D016480:Helicobacter pylori / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000097:blood; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D018445:Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical; D007564:Japan; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious / Q000382:microbiology*; D019105:Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA Technique / Q000379:methods
D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D017931:DNA Primers; D007074:Immunoglobulin G