title: Identification of Viable Helicobacter pylori in Drinking Water Supplies by Cultural and Molecular Techniques.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Helicobacter pylori is one of the most common causes of chronic bacterial infection in humans, directly related to peptic ulcer and gastric cancer. It has been suggested that H. pylori can be acquired through different transmission routes, including water. In this study, culture and qPCR were used to detect and identify the presence of H. pylori in drinking water. Furthermore, the combined techniques PMA-qPCR and DVC-FISH were applied for detection of viable cells of H. pylori.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among 24 drinking water samples, 16 samples were positive for the presence of H. pylori, but viable cells were only detected in six samples. Characteristic colonies, covered by a mass of bacterial unspecific growth, were observed on selective agar plates from an only sample, after enrichment. The mixed culture was submitted to DVC-FISH and qPCR analysis, followed by sequencing of the amplicons. Molecular techniques confirmed the growth of H. pylori on the agar plate.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results demonstrate for the first time that H. pylori can survive and be potentially infective in drinking water, showing that water distribution systems could be a potential route for H. pylori transmission.
authors: Biotechnology Department, Polytechnic University of Valencia, 46022, Valencia, Spain.
authors: Paula
authors: P
authors: Santiago
authors: Research Institute of Water and Environmental Ingeneering (IIAMA), Polytechnic University of Valencia, 46022, Valencia, Spain.
authors: Yolanda
authors: Y
authors: Moreno
authors: Biotechnology Department, Polytechnic University of Valencia, 46022, Valencia, Spain.
authors: M Antonía
authors: MA
authors: Ferrús
mesh_terms: D001483:Base Sequence; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D060766:Drinking Water / Q000382:microbiology*; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission*; D016480:Helicobacter pylori / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D017404:In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence; D058889:Molecular Typing; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D014881:Water Supply
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D060766:Drinking Water
keywords: H. pylori; VBNC; detection