Helicobacter pylori eradication restored sonic hedgehog expression in the stomach.
OBJECTIVE
Sonic hedgehog (Shh) is a morphogen involved in many aspects of patterning of the gut during embryogenesis and in gastric fundic gland homeostasis in the adult. Shh expression is reportedly to be reduced in Helicobacterpylori-associated gastritis. The aim of this study was to assess the restoration of Shh expression after H. pylori eradication.


METHODS
Twenty H. pylori-positive patients who underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy before and after the eradication were studied. Biopsy specimens were taken from the greater curvature of the middle third of the stomach body. The specimens were evaluated for the severity of acute and chronic inflammation and for that of mucosal atrophy, based on the updated Sydney system. Immunohistochemistry for Shh and H(+)-, K(+)-ATPase was also performed; the percentages of positively stained epithelial cells for the two molecules were expressed as the Shh index and H(+)-, K(+)-ATPase index, respectively.


RESULTS
There was a significant decrease in the acute and chronic inflammation scores and also in the mucosal atrophy score following the eradication. The Shh and H(+)-, K(+)-ATPase index were significantly increased following the eradication.


CONCLUSIONS
Suppressed Shh expression in the gastric mucosa by H. pylori infection was significantly restored following eradication of the infection.
Nishizawa
Toshihiro
T
Department of Internal Medicine, Keio University School of Medicine, 35 Shinanomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-8582, Japan.
Suzuki
Hidekazu
H
Masaoka
Tatsuhiro
T
Minegishi
Yuriko
Y
Iwasahi
Eisuke
E
Hibi
Toshifumi
T
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D005753:Gastric Mucosa / Q000378:metabolism*; D017506:H(+)-K(+)-Exchanging ATPase / Q000032:analysis; D053823:Hedgehog Proteins / Q000032:analysis / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism*; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D016480:Helicobacter pylori / Q000187:drug effects / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013270:Stomach / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D013272:Stomach Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology
D053823:Hedgehog Proteins; C509239:SHH protein, human; D017506:H(+)-K(+)-Exchanging ATPase