title: Quantification of Helicobacter pylori levels in soil samples from public playgrounds in Spain.
abstract: Helicobacter pylori are ubiquitous Gram-negative bacteria with a high estimated level of infection in the world populations, but a majority of the infected persons are asymptomatic. This pathogen has been classified by the World Health Organization as a class I carcinogen and recognized as the causal agent of most peptic ulcers and chronic gastritis that might lead to stomach cancer. Although not all the transmission pathways of these bacteria into humans have been properly identified, enough data have suggested that the oral-oral or fecal-oral ones are the main infection routes. Helicobacter pylori have been detected in non-treated water and in drinking water, which suggested that water might be an important infection source. As childhood is the critical period of infection, the aim of the present work was to examine the presence of Helicobacter pylori in soil samples from public playing areas of Spanish parks.
authors.affiliation: Health and Environmental Laboratory (MSM-Lab)-Aquasost, UNESCO Chair in Sustainability, Uiversitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Violinista Vellsolá 37, 08222 Terrassa, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Leonardo Martín
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Pérez
authors.forename: Francesc
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Codony
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: López Leyton
authors.forename: Mariana
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fittipaldi
authors.forename: Bárbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Adrados
authors.forename: Jordi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Morató
mesh_terms: D002138:Calibration; D002947:Cities; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000382:microbiology*; D016480:Helicobacter pylori / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D010988:Play and Playthings; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012988:Soil Microbiology; D013030:Spain