title: Phagocytosis and persistence of Helicobacter pylori.
abstract: Helicobacter pylori is a spiral-shaped, flagellated, microaerophilic Gram-negative bacterium that colonizes the gastric epithelium of humans. All persons infected with H. pylori have gastritis, and some will develop severe disease such as peptic ulcers or gastric cancer. A characteristic feature of this infection is the pronounced accumulation of phagocytes, particularly neutrophils, in the gastric mucosa. H. pylori thrives in a phagocyte-rich environment, and we describe here how this organism uses an array of novel virulence factors to manipulate chemotaxis, phagocytosis, membrane trafficking and the respiratory burst as a means to evade elimination by the innate immune response.
authors.affiliation: Inflammation Program and the Department of Medicine, University of Iowa and the VA Medical Center, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA. lee-ann-allen@uiowa.edu
authors.forename: Lee-Ann H
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Allen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005753:Gastric Mucosa / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000382:microbiology; D041981:Gastrointestinal Tract / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000382:microbiology; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D016480:Helicobacter pylori / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological; D009504:Neutrophils / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D010587:Phagocytosis / Q000502:physiology*