1 3037 169 GENOME AND METHYLOME VARIATION IN HELICOBACTER PYLORI WITH A CAG PATHOGENICITY ISLAND DURING EARLY STAGES OF HUMAN INFECTION. BACKGROUND & AIMS: HELICOBACTER PYLORI IS REMARKABLE FOR ITS GENETIC VARIATION; YET, LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT ITS GENETIC CHANGES DURING EARLY STAGES OF HUMAN INFECTION, AS THE BACTERIA ADAPT TO THEIR NEW ENVIRONMENT. WE ANALYZED GENOME AND METHYLOME VARIATIONS IN A FULLY VIRULENT STRAIN OF H PYLORI DURING EXPERIMENTAL INFECTION. METHODS: WE PERFORMED A RANDOMIZED PHASE I/II, OBSERVER-BLIND, PLACEBO-CONTROLLED STUDY OF 12 HEALTHY, H PYLORI-NEGATIVE ADULTS IN GERMANY FROM OCTOBER 2008 THROUGH MARCH 2010. THE VOLUNTEERS WERE GIVEN A PROPHYLACTIC VACCINE CANDIDATE (N = 7) OR PLACEBO (N = 5) AND THEN CHALLENGED WITH H PYLORI STRAIN BCM-300. BIOPSY SAMPLES WERE COLLECTED AND H PYLORI WERE ISOLATED. GENOMES OF THE CHALLENGE STRAIN AND 12 REISOLATES, OBTAINED 12 WEEKS AFTER (OR IN 1 CASE, 62 WEEKS AFTER) INFECTION WERE SEQUENCED BY SINGLE-MOLECULE, REAL-TIME TECHNOLOGY, WHICH, IN PARALLEL, PERMITTED DETERMINATION OF GENOME-WIDE METHYLATION PATTERNS FOR ALL STRAINS. FUNCTIONAL EFFECTS OF GENETIC CHANGES OBSERVED IN H PYLORI STRAINS DURING HUMAN INFECTION WERE ASSESSED BY MEASURING RELEASE OF INTERLEUKIN 8 FROM AGS CELLS (TO DETECT CAG PATHOGENICITY ISLAND FUNCTION), NEUTRAL RED UPTAKE (TO DETECT VACUOLATING CYTOTOXIN ACTIVITY), AND ADHESION ASSAYS. RESULTS: THE OBSERVED MUTATION RATE WAS IN AGREEMENT WITH RATES PREVIOUSLY DETERMINED FROM PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC H PYLORI INFECTIONS, WITHOUT EVIDENCE OF A MUTATION BURST. A LOSS OF CAG PATHOGENICITY ISLAND FUNCTION WAS OBSERVED IN 3 REISOLATES. IN ADDITION, 3 REISOLATES FROM THE VACCINE GROUP ACQUIRED MUTATIONS IN THE VACUOLATING CYTOTOXIN GENE VACA, RESULTING IN LOSS OF VACUOLIZATION ACTIVITY. WE OBSERVED INTERSTRAIN VARIATION IN METHYLOMES DUE TO PHASE VARIATION IN GENES ENCODING METHYLTRANSFERASES. CONCLUSIONS: WE ANALYZED ADAPTATION OF A FULLY VIRULENT STRAIN OF H PYLORI TO 12 DIFFERENT VOLUNTEERS TO OBTAIN A ROBUST ESTIMATE OF THE FREQUENCY OF GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC CHANGES IN THE ABSENCE OF INTERSTRAIN RECOMBINATION. OUR FINDINGS INDICATE THAT THE LARGE AMOUNT OF GENETIC VARIATION IN H PYLORI POSES A CHALLENGE TO VACCINE DEVELOPMENT. CLINICALTRIALS.GOV NO: NCT00736476. 2018 2 3219 36 HELICOBACTER PYLORI AND GASTRIC CANCER. INFECTION WITH HELICOBACTER PYLORI IS ESTABLISHED AS THE MAJOR RISK FACTOR FOR GASTRIC CANCER DEVELOPMENT. DAMAGE OF THE MUCOSAL BARRIER DUE TO H. PYLORI-INDUCED INFLAMMATION ENHANCES THE CARCINOGENIC EFFECT OF OTHER RISK FACTORS SUCH AS SALT INTAKE OR TOBACCO SMOKING. THE GENETIC DISPOSITION OF BOTH THE BACTERIAL STRAIN AND THE HOST CAN INCREASE THE POTENTIAL TOWARDS GASTRIC CANCER FORMATION. GENETIC VARIANCE OF THE BACTERIAL PROTEINS CAGA AND VACA IS ASSOCIATED WITH A HIGHER GASTRIC CANCER RISK, AS ARE POLYMORPHISMS AND EPIGENETIC CHANGES IN HOST GENE CODING FOR INTERLEUKINS (IL1BETA, IL8), TRANSCRIPTION FACTORS (CDX2, RUNX3) AND DNA REPAIR ENZYMES. APPLICATION OF HIGH-THROUGHPUT ASSAYS FOR GENOME-WIDE ASSESSMENT OF EITHER GENETIC STRUCTURAL VARIANCE OR GENE EXPRESSION PATTERNS MAY LEAD TO A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE PATHOBIOLOGICAL BACKGROUND OF THESE PROCESSES, INCLUDING THE UNDERLYING SIGNALING PATHWAYS. UNDERSTANDING OF THE STEPWISE ALTERATIONS THAT TAKE PLACE IN THE TRANSITION FROM CHRONIC ATROPHIC GASTRITIS, VIA METAPLASTIC CHANGES, TO INVASIVE NEOPLASIA IS VITAL TO DEFINE THE 'POINT OF NO RETURN' BEFORE WHICH ERADICATION OF H. PYLORI HAS THE POTENTIAL TO PREVENT GASTRIC CANCER. CURRENTLY, ERADICATION AS PREVENTIVE STRATEGY IS ONLY RECOMMENDED FOR HIGH-INCIDENCE REGIONS IN ASIA; LARGE POPULATION STUDIES WITH AN ADEQUATE FOLLOW-UP ARE REQUIRED TO DEMONSTRATE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SUCH AN APPROACH IN WESTERN POPULATIONS. 2014 3 3233 25 HELICOBACTER, INFLAMMATION, AND GASTRIC CANCER. HELICOBACTER PYLORI INFECTION LEADS TO LONG-LASTING CHRONIC INFLAMMATION AND REPRESENTS THE MOST COMMON RISK FACTOR UNDERLYING GASTRIC CANCER. RECENTLY, NEW INSIGHTS INTO THE MECHANISMS THROUGH WHICH H. PYLORI AND MUCOSAL INFLAMMATION LEAD TO CANCER DEVELOPMENT HAVE EMERGED. H. PYLORI VIRULENCE FACTORS, IN PARTICULAR SPECIFIC CAGA GENOTYPES, REPRESENT MAIN FACTORS IN GASTRIC CANCER, INDUCING ALTERED INTRACELLULAR SIGNALING IN EPITHELIAL CELLS. THE CHRONIC NATURE OF H. PYLORI INFECTION APPEARS TO RELATE TO THE VACA VIRULENCE FACTOR AND TH17/TREG MECHANISMS. A ROLE OF H. PYLORI INFECTION IN EPIGENETIC AND MICRORNA DEREGULATION HAS BEEN SHOWN. MUTATION OF THE EPITHELIAL CELL GENOME, A HALLMARK OF CANCER, WAS DEMONSTRATED TO ACCUMULATE IN H. PYLORI INFECTED STOMACH PARTLY DUE TO INADEQUATE DNA REPAIR. GASTRIC STEM CELLS WERE SHOWN TO BE TARGETS OF OXIDATIVE INJURY IN THE HELICOBACTER-INFLAMMATORY MILIEU. RECENT ADVANCES EMPHASIZING THE CONTRIBUTION OF BACTERIAL FACTORS, INFLAMMATORY MEDIATORS, AND THE HOST EPITHELIAL RESPONSE IN GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS ARE REVIEWED. 2013 4 3232 22 HELICOBACTER PYLORI-INDUCED SIGNALING PATHWAYS CONTRIBUTE TO INTESTINAL METAPLASIA AND GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS. HELICOBACTER PYLORI (H. PYLORI) INDUCES CHRONIC GASTRIC INFLAMMATION, ATROPHIC GASTRITIS, INTESTINAL METAPLASIA, AND CANCER. ALTHOUGH THE RISK OF GASTRIC CANCER INCREASES EXPONENTIALLY WITH THE EXTENT OF ATROPHIC GASTRITIS, THE PRECISE MECHANISMS OF GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS HAVE NOT BEEN FULLY ELUCIDATED. H. PYLORI INDUCES GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC CHANGES IN GASTRIC EPITHELIAL CELLS THROUGH ACTIVATING INTRACELLULAR SIGNALING PATHWAYS IN A CAGPAI-DEPENDENT MANNER. H. PYLORI EVENTUALLY INDUCES GASTRIC CANCER WITH CHROMOSOMAL INSTABILITY (CIN) OR MICROSATELLITE INSTABILITY (MSI), WHICH ARE CLASSIFIED AS TWO MAJOR SUBTYPES OF GASTRIC CANCER. ELUCIDATION OF THE PRECISE MECHANISMS OF GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS WILL ALSO BE IMPORTANT FOR CANCER THERAPY. 2015 5 4984 26 PATHWAYS OF GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS, HELICOBACTER PYLORI VIRULENCE AND INTERACTIONS WITH ANTIOXIDANT SYSTEMS, VITAMIN C AND PHYTOCHEMICALS. HELICOBACTER PYLORI IS A CLASS ONE CARCINOGEN WHICH CAUSES CHRONIC ATROPHIC GASTRITIS, GASTRIC INTESTINAL METAPLASIA, DYSPLASIA AND ADENOCARCINOMA. THE MECHANISMS BY WHICH H. PYLORI INTERACTS WITH OTHER RISK AND PROTECTIVE FACTORS, PARTICULARLY VITAMIN C IN GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS ARE COMPLEX. GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS INCLUDES METABOLIC, ENVIRONMENTAL, EPIGENETIC, GENOMIC, INFECTIVE, INFLAMMATORY AND ONCOGENIC PATHWAYS. THE MOLECULAR CLASSIFICATION OF GASTRIC CANCER SUBTYPES HAS REVOLUTIONIZED THE UNDERSTANDING OF GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS. THIS INCLUDES THE TUMOUR MICROENVIRONMENT, GERMLINE MUTATIONS, AND THE ROLE OF HELICOBACTER PYLORI BACTERIA, EPSTEIN BARR VIRUS AND EPIGENETICS IN SOMATIC MUTATIONS. THERE IS EVIDENCE THAT ASCORBIC ACID, PHYTOCHEMICALS AND ENDOGENOUS ANTIOXIDANT SYSTEMS CAN MODIFY THE RISK OF GASTRIC CANCER. GASTRIC JUICE ASCORBATE LEVELS DEPEND ON DIETARY INTAKE OF ASCORBIC ACID BUT CAN ALSO BE DECREASED BY H. PYLORI INFECTION, H. PYLORI CAGA SECRETION, TOBACCO SMOKING, ACHLORHYDRIA AND CHRONIC ATROPHIC GASTRITIS. ASCORBIC ACID MAY BE PROTECTIVE AGAINST GASTRIC CANCER BY ITS ANTIOXIDANT EFFECT IN GASTRIC CYTOPROTECTION, REGENERATING ACTIVE VITAMIN E AND GLUTATHIONE, INHIBITING ENDOGENOUS N-NITROSATION, REDUCING TOXIC EFFECTS OF INGESTED NITROSODIMETHYLAMINES AND HETEROCYCLIC AMINES, AND PREVENTING H. PYLORI INFECTION. THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SUCH CYTOPROTECTION IS RELATED TO H. PYLORI STRAIN VIRULENCE, PARTICULARLY CAGA EXPRESSION. THE ROLE OF VITAMIN C IN EPIGENETIC REPROGRAMMING IN GASTRIC CANCER IS STILL EVOLVING. OTHER FACTORS IN CONJUNCTION WITH VITAMIN C ALSO PLAY A ROLE IN GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS. ERADICATION OF H. PYLORI MAY LEAD TO RECOVERY OF VITAMIN C SECRETION BY GASTRIC EPITHELIUM AND ENABLE REGRESSION OF PREMALIGNANT GASTRIC LESIONS, THEREBY INTERRUPTING THE CORREA CASCADE OF GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS. 2020 6 4409 31 MOLECULAR ANATOMY AND PATHOGENIC ACTIONS OF HELICOBACTER PYLORI CAGA THAT UNDERPIN GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS. CHRONIC INFECTION WITH HELICOBACTER PYLORI CAGA-POSITIVE STRAINS IS THE STRONGEST RISK FACTOR FOR GASTRIC CANCER. THE CAGA GENE PRODUCT, CAGA, IS DELIVERED INTO GASTRIC EPITHELIAL CELLS VIA THE BACTERIAL TYPE IV SECRETION SYSTEM. DELIVERED CAGA THEN UNDERGOES TYROSINE PHOSPHORYLATION AT THE GLU-PRO-ILE-TYR-ALA (EPIYA) MOTIFS IN ITS C-TERMINAL REGION AND ACTS AS AN ONCOGENIC SCAFFOLD PROTEIN THAT PHYSICALLY INTERACTS WITH MULTIPLE HOST SIGNALING PROTEINS IN BOTH TYROSINE PHOSPHORYLATION-DEPENDENT AND -INDEPENDENT MANNERS. ANALYSIS OF CAGA USING IN VITRO CULTURED GASTRIC EPITHELIAL CELLS HAS INDICATED THAT THE NONPHYSIOLOGICAL SCAFFOLDING ACTIONS OF CAGA CELL-AUTONOMOUSLY PROMOTE THE MALIGNANT TRANSFORMATION OF THE CELLS BY ENDOWING THE CELLS WITH MULTIPLE PHENOTYPIC CANCER HALLMARKS: SUSTAINED PROLIFERATION, EVASION OF GROWTH SUPPRESSORS, INVASIVENESS, RESISTANCE TO CELL DEATH, AND GENOMIC INSTABILITY. TRANSGENIC EXPRESSION OF CAGA IN MICE LEADS TO IN VIVO ONCOGENIC ACTION OF CAGA WITHOUT ANY OVERT INFLAMMATION. THE IN VIVO ONCOGENIC ACTIVITY OF CAGA IS FURTHER POTENTIATED IN THE PRESENCE OF CHRONIC INFLAMMATION. SINCE HELICOBACTER PYLORI INFECTION TRIGGERS A PROINFLAMMATORY RESPONSE IN HOST CELLS, A FEEDFORWARD STIMULATION LOOP THAT AUGMENTS THE ONCOGENIC ACTIONS OF CAGA AND INFLAMMATION IS CREATED IN CAGA-INJECTED GASTRIC MUCOSA. GIVEN THAT HELICOBACTER PYLORI IS NO LONGER COLONIZED IN ESTABLISHED GASTRIC CANCER LESIONS, THE MULTISTEP NATURE OF GASTRIC CANCER DEVELOPMENT SHOULD INCLUDE A "HIT-AND-RUN" PROCESS OF CAGA ACTION. THUS, ACQUISITION OF GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS THAT COMPENSATE FOR CAGA-DIRECTED CANCER HALLMARKS MAY BE REQUIRED FOR COMPLETION OF THE "HIT-AND-RUN" PROCESS OF GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS. 2020 7 3227 40 HELICOBACTER PYLORI INFECTION-INDUCED H3SER10 PHOSPHORYLATION IN STEPWISE GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS AND ITS CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS. BACKGROUND: OUR PREVIOUS WORKS HAVE DEMONSTRATED THAT HELICOBACTER PYLORI (HP) INFECTION CAN ALTER HISTONE H3 SERINE 10 PHOSPHORYLATION STATUS IN GASTRIC EPITHELIAL CELLS. HOWEVER, WHETHER HELICOBACTER PYLORI-INDUCED HISTONE H3 SERINE 10 PHOSPHORYLATION PARTICIPATES IN GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS IS UNKNOWN. WE INVESTIGATE THE EXPRESSION OF HISTONE H3 SERINE 10 PHOSPHORYLATION IN VARIOUS STAGES OF GASTRIC DISEASE AND EXPLORE ITS CLINICAL IMPLICATION. MATERIALS AND METHODS: STOMACH BIOPSY SAMPLES FROM 129 PATIENTS WERE COLLECTED AND STAINED WITH HISTONE H3 SERINE 10 PHOSPHORYLATION, KI67, AND HELICOBACTER PYLORI BY IMMUNOHISTOCHEMISTRY STAINING, EXPRESSED AS LABELING INDEX. THEY WERE CATEGORIZED INTO NONATROPHIC GASTRITIS, CHRONIC ATROPHIC GASTRITIS, INTESTINAL METAPLASIA, LOW-GRADE INTRAEPITHELIAL NEOPLASIA, HIGH-GRADE INTRAEPITHELIAL NEOPLASIA, AND INTESTINAL-TYPE GASTRIC CANCER GROUPS. HELICOBACTER PYLORI INFECTION WAS DETERMINED BY EITHER (13) C-UREA BREATH TEST OR IMMUNOHISTOCHEMISTRY STAINING. RESULTS: IN HELICOBACTER PYLORI-NEGATIVE PATIENTS, LABELING INDEX OF HISTONE H3 SERINE 10 PHOSPHORYLATION WAS GRADUALLY INCREASED IN NONATROPHIC GASTRITIS, CHRONIC ATROPHIC GASTRITIS, INTESTINAL METAPLASIA GROUPS, PEAKED AT LOW-GRADE INTRAEPITHELIAL NEOPLASIA, AND DECLINED IN HIGH-GRADE INTRAEPITHELIAL NEOPLASIA AND GASTRIC CANCER GROUPS. IN HELICOBACTER PYLORI-INFECTED PATIENTS, LABELING INDEX OF HISTONE H3 SERINE 10 PHOSPHORYLATION FOLLOWED THE SIMILAR PATTERN AS ABOVE, WITH INCREASED EXPRESSION OVER THE CORRESPONDING HELICOBACTER PYLORI-NEGATIVE CONTROLS EXCEPT IN NONATROPHIC GASTRITIS PATIENT WHOSE LABELING INDEX WAS DECREASED WHEN COMPARED WITH HELICOBACTER PYLORI-NEGATIVE CONTROL. LABELING INDEX OF KI67 IN HELICOBACTER PYLORI-NEGATIVE GROUPS WAS HIGHER IN GASTRIC CANCER THAN CHRONIC ATROPHIC GASTRITIS AND LOW-GRADE INTRAEPITHELIAL NEOPLASIA GROUPS, AND HIGHER IN INTESTINAL METAPLASIA GROUP COMPARED WITH CHRONIC ATROPHIC GASTRITIS GROUP. IN HELICOBACTER PYLORI-POSITIVE GROUPS, KI67 LABELING INDEX WAS INCREASED STEPWISE FROM NONATROPHIC GASTRITIS TO GASTRIC CANCER EXCEPT SLIGHTLY DECREASE IN CHRONIC ATROPHIC GASTRITIS GROUP. IN ADDITION, WE NOTED THAT HISTONE H3 SERINE 10 PHOSPHORYLATION STAINING IS ACCOMPANIED WITH ITS LOCATION CHANGES FROM GASTRIC GLAND BOTTOM EXPANDED TO WHOLE GLAND AS DISEASE STAGE PROGRESS. CONCLUSIONS: THESE RESULTS INDICATE THAT STEPWISE GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS IS ASSOCIATED WITH ALTERED HISTONE H3 SERINE 10 PHOSPHORYLATION, HELICOBACTER PYLORI INFECTION ENHANCES HISTONE H3 SERINE 10 PHOSPHORYLATION EXPRESSION IN THESE PROCESSES; IT IS ALSO ACCOMPANIED WITH HISTONE H3 SERINE 10 PHOSPHORYLATION LOCATION CHANGE FROM GLAND BOTTOM STAINING EXPAND TO WHOLE GLAND EXPRESSION. THE RESULTS SUGGEST THAT EPIGENETIC DYSREGULATION MAY PLAY IMPORTANT ROLES IN HELICOBACTER PYLORI-INDUCED GASTRIC CANCER. 2018 8 1321 33 DEMONSTRATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF MUTATIONS INDUCED BY HELICOBACTER PYLORI ORGANISMS IN GASTRIC EPITHELIAL CELLS. BACKGROUND: HELICOBACTER PYLORI GASTRITIS INCREASES GASTRIC CANCER RISK. MICROSATELLITE INSTABILITY-TYPE MUTATIONS ARE SECONDARY TO DEFICIENT DNA MISMATCH REPAIR. H. PYLORI GASTRITIS IS MORE FREQUENT IN PATIENTS WITH MICROSATELLITE INSTABILITY-POSITIVE GASTRIC CANCERS, AND H. PYLORI ORGANISMS INDEPENDENTLY OF INFLAMMATION CAN REDUCE DNA MISMATCH REPAIR PROTEIN LEVELS, RAISING THE HYPOTHESIS THAT H. PYLORI ORGANISMS MIGHT LEAD TO MUTAGENESIS DURING INFECTION. MATERIALS AND METHODS: MUTATIONS WERE DETECTED USING A GREEN FLUORESCENT PROTEIN REPORTER VECTOR (PEGFP-CA13). GASTRIC CANCER AGS CELLS TRANSFECTED WITH PEGFP-CA13 WERE COCULTURED WITH H. PYLORI OR ESCHERICHIA COLI. THE NUMBERS OF GREEN FLUORESCENT PROTEIN (GFP)-POSITIVE CELLS WERE DETERMINED, AND GFP, HMSH2, AND HMLH1 PROTEIN LEVELS WERE MEASURED BY WESTERN BLOT. THE EFFECT OF H. PYLORI ON CPG METHYLATION STATUS OF HMLH1 WAS DETERMINED BY METHYLATION-SPECIFIC POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION. RESULTS: GFP LEVELS AND GFP-POSITIVE CELL NUMBERS IN AGS CELLS COCULTURED WITH H. PYLORI SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED, AS THE LEVELS OF HMLH1 AND HMSH2 DROPPED. H. PYLORI COCULTURES INDUCED LOW-LEVEL CPG METHYLATION OF THE HMLH1 PROMOTER. SEQUENCE ANALYSIS OF CELLS COCULTURED WITH H. PYLORI SHOWED AN INCREASED NUMBER OF FRAMESHIFT MUTATIONS AND POINT MUTATIONS AS COMPARED TO CELLS NOT COCULTURED WITH H. PYLORI (P = .03 AND P = .001, RESPECTIVELY). CONCLUSIONS: THIS IS THE FIRST REPORT SHOWING THAT H. PYLORI BACTERIA MAY LEAD TO ACCUMULATION OF GENOMIC MUTATIONS, INDEPENDENTLY OF UNDERLYING INFLAMMATION. THIS IS ASSOCIATED WITH REDUCED DNA MISMATCH REPAIR, AND IS AT LEAST IN PART ASSOCIATED WITH CPG METHYLATION OF THE HMLH1 PROMOTER. THESE DATA SUPPORT THE NOTION THAT H. PYLORI-INDUCED MUTATIONS AND EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS IN GASTRIC EPITHELIAL CELLS DURING CHRONIC GASTRITIS MAY CONTRIBUTE TO AN INCREASED RISK OF GASTRIC CANCER ASSOCIATED WITH H. PYLORI INFECTION. 2006 9 3229 29 HELICOBACTER PYLORI-INDUCED GASTRIC INFLAMMATION AND GASTRIC CANCER. HELICOBACTER PYLORI (H. PYLORI) INFECT OVER HALF OF THE WORLD'S POPULATION. THE PREVALENCE OF H. PYLORI INFECTION AND THE PREDOMINANT GENOTYPE OF H. PYLORI VIRULENCE FACTORS VARY CONSIDERABLY ACROSS DIFFERENT GEOGRAPHICAL REGIONS. H. PYLORI COULD UNIQUELY PERSIST FOR DECADES IN THE HARSH STOMACH ENVIRONMENT, WHERE IT DAMAGES THE GASTRIC MUCOSA AND CHANGES THE PATTERN OF GASTRIC HORMONE RELEASE, THEREBY AFFECTS GASTRIC PHYSIOLOGY. BY UTILIZING VARIOUS VIRULENCE FACTORS, H. PYLORI TARGETS DIFFERENT CELLULAR PROTEINS TO MODULATE THE HOST INFLAMMATORY RESPONSE AND INITIATE MULTIPLE "HITS" ON THE GASTRIC MUCOSA, RESULTING IN CHRONIC GASTRITIS AND PEPTIC ULCERATION. AMONG THE LONG-TERM CONSEQUENCES OF H. PYLORI INFECTION IS GASTRIC MALIGNANCIES, PARTICULARLY GASTRIC CANCER (GC) AND GASTRIC MUCOSA-ASSOCIATED LYMPHOID TISSUE (MALT) LYMPHOMA. AS SUCH, H. PYLORI HAS BEEN RECOGNIZED AS A CLASS I CARCINOGEN BY THE INTERNATIONAL AGENCY FOR RESEARCH ON CANCER. DESPITE A CLOSE CAUSAL LINK BETWEEN H. PYLORI INFECTION AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF GASTRIC MALIGNANCIES, THE PRECISE MECHANISMS INVOLVED IN THIS PROCESS ARE STILL OBSCURE. STUDIES OVER THE PAST TWO DECADES HAVE REVEALED THAT H. PYLORI EXERT ONCOGENIC EFFECTS ON GASTRIC MUCOSA THROUGH A COMPLEX INTERACTION BETWEEN BACTERIAL FACTORS, HOST FACTORS, AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS. NUMEROUS SIGNALING PATHWAYS CAN BE ACTIVATED BY H. PYLORI. IN THIS REVIEW, WE AIM TO ELABORATE ON THE RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN THE PATHOPHYSIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS OF H. PYLORI-INDUCED GASTRIC INFLAMMATION AND GASTRIC CANCER. 2014 10 3625 72 IN VIVO GENOME AND METHYLOME ADAPTATION OF CAG-NEGATIVE HELICOBACTER PYLORI DURING EXPERIMENTAL HUMAN INFECTION. MULTIPLE STUDIES HAVE DEMONSTRATED RAPID BACTERIAL GENOME EVOLUTION DURING CHRONIC INFECTION WITH HELICOBACTER PYLORI IN CONTRAST, LITTLE WAS KNOWN ABOUT GENETIC CHANGES DURING THE FIRST STAGES OF INFECTION, WHEN SELECTIVE PRESSURE IS LIKELY TO BE HIGHEST. USING SINGLE-MOLECULE, REAL-TIME (SMRT) AND ILLUMINA SEQUENCING TECHNOLOGIES, WE ANALYZED GENOME AND METHYLOME EVOLUTION DURING THE FIRST 10 WEEKS OF INFECTION BY COMPARING THE CAG PATHOGENICITY ISLAND (CAGPAI)-NEGATIVE H. PYLORI CHALLENGE STRAIN BCS 100 WITH PAIRS OF H. PYLORI REISOLATES FROM GASTRIC ANTRUM AND CORPUS BIOPSY SPECIMENS OF 10 HUMAN VOLUNTEERS WHO HAD BEEN INFECTED WITH THIS STRAIN AS PART OF A VACCINE TRIAL. MOST GENETIC CHANGES DETECTED IN THE REISOLATES AFFECTED GENES WITH A SURFACE-RELATED ROLE OR A PREDICTED FUNCTION IN PEPTIDE UPTAKE. APART FROM PHENOTYPIC CHANGES OF THE BACTERIAL ENVELOPE, A DUPLICATION OF THE CATALASE GENE WAS OBSERVED IN ONE REISOLATE, WHICH RESULTED IN HIGHER CATALASE ACTIVITY AND IMPROVED SURVIVAL UNDER OXIDATIVE STRESS CONDITIONS. THE METHYLOMES ALSO VARIED IN SOME OF THE REISOLATES, MOSTLY BY ACTIVITY SWITCHING OF PHASE-VARIABLE METHYLTRANSFERASE (MTASE) GENES. THE OBSERVED IN VIVO MUTATION SPECTRUM WAS REMARKABLE FOR A VERY HIGH PROPORTION OF NONSYNONYMOUS MUTATIONS. ALTHOUGH THE DATA SHOWED SUBSTANTIAL WITHIN-STRAIN GENOME DIVERSITY IN THE CHALLENGE STRAIN, MOST ANTRUM AND CORPUS REISOLATES FROM THE SAME VOLUNTEERS WERE HIGHLY SIMILAR TO EACH OTHER, INDICATING THAT THE CHALLENGE INFECTION REPRESENTS A MAJOR SELECTIVE BOTTLENECK SHAPING THE TRANSMITTED POPULATION. OUR FINDINGS SUGGEST RAPID IN VIVO SELECTION OF H. PYLORI DURING EARLY-PHASE INFECTION PROVIDING ADAPTATION TO DIFFERENT INDIVIDUALS BY COMMON MECHANISMS OF GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS.IMPORTANCE EXCEPTIONAL GENETIC DIVERSITY AND VARIABILITY ARE HALLMARKS OF HELICOBACTER PYLORI, BUT THE BIOLOGICAL ROLE OF THIS PLASTICITY REMAINS INCOMPLETELY UNDERSTOOD. HERE, WE HAD THE RARE OPPORTUNITY TO INVESTIGATE THE MOLECULAR EVOLUTION DURING THE FIRST WEEKS OF H. PYLORI INFECTION BY COMPARING THE GENOMES AND EPIGENOMES OF H. PYLORI STRAIN BCS 100 USED TO CHALLENGE HUMAN VOLUNTEERS IN A VACCINE TRIAL WITH THOSE OF BACTERIA REISOLATED FROM THE VOLUNTEERS 10 WEEKS AFTER THE CHALLENGE. THE DATA PROVIDE MOLECULAR INSIGHTS INTO THE PROCESS OF ESTABLISHMENT OF THIS HIGHLY VERSATILE PATHOGEN IN 10 DIFFERENT HUMAN INDIVIDUAL HOSTS, SHOWING, FOR EXAMPLE, SELECTION FOR CHANGES IN HOST-INTERACTION MOLECULES AS WELL AS CHANGES IN EPIGENETIC METHYLATION PATTERNS. THE DATA PROVIDE IMPORTANT CLUES TO THE EARLY ADAPTATION OF H. PYLORI TO NEW HOST NICHES AFTER TRANSMISSION, WHICH WE BELIEVE IS VITAL TO UNDERSTAND ITS SUCCESS AS A CHRONIC PATHOGEN AND DEVELOP MORE EFFICIENT TREATMENTS AND VACCINES. 2020 11 526 37 ASSOCIATIONS OF HELICOBACTER PYLORI INFECTION AND CHRONIC ATROPHIC GASTRITIS WITH ACCELERATED EPIGENETIC AGEING IN OLDER ADULTS. BACKGROUND: HELICOBACTER PYLORI (HP) INFECTION AND CHRONIC ATROPHIC GASTRITIS (CAG) HAVE SHOWN STRONG ASSOCIATIONS WITH THE DEVELOPMENT OF GASTRIC CANCER. THIS STUDY AIMED TO EXAMINE WHETHER BOTH RISK FACTORS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH ACCELERATED EPIGENETIC AGEING, AS DETERMINED BY THE 'DNA METHYLATION AGE', IN A POPULATION-BASED STUDY OF OLDER ADULTS (N=1477). METHODS: SEROLOGICAL MEASUREMENTS OF HP ANTIBODIES AND PEPSINOGEN I AND II FOR CAG DEFINITION WERE OBTAINED BY ELISA KITS. WHOLE BLOOD DNA METHYLATION PROFILES WERE MEASURED BY ILLUMINA HUMAN METHYLATION450K BEADCHIP. DNA METHYLATION AGES WERE CALCULATED BY TWO ALGORITHMS PROPOSED BY HORVATH AND HANNUM ET AL. RESULTS: AFTER ADJUSTING FOR POTENTIAL COVARIATES IN LINEAR REGRESSION MODELS, WE FOUND THAT HP INFECTION, INFECTION WITH VIRULENT HP STRAINS (CAGA+) AND SEVERE CAG WERE SIGNIFICANTLY ASSOCIATED WITH AN INCREASE IN DNA METHYLATION AGE BY APPROXIMATELY 0.4, 0.6 AND 1 YEAR (ALL P-VALUES <0.05), RESPECTIVELY. CONCLUSIONS: OUR STUDY INDICATES THAT BOTH CAGA+ HP INFECTION AND CAG GO ALONG WITH ACCELERATED EPIGENETIC AGEING. 2017 12 3225 34 HELICOBACTER PYLORI INFECTION INTRODUCES DNA DOUBLE-STRAND BREAKS IN HOST CELLS. GASTRIC CANCER IS AN INFLAMMATION-RELATED MALIGNANCY RELATED TO LONG-STANDING ACUTE AND CHRONIC INFLAMMATION CAUSED BY INFECTION WITH THE HUMAN BACTERIAL PATHOGEN HELICOBACTER PYLORI. INFLAMMATION CAN RESULT IN GENOMIC INSTABILITY. HOWEVER, THERE ARE CONSIDERABLE DATA THAT H. PYLORI ITSELF CAN ALSO PRODUCE GENOMIC INSTABILITY BOTH DIRECTLY AND THROUGH EPIGENETIC PATHWAYS. OVERALL, THE MECHANISMS OF H. PYLORI-INDUCED HOST GENOMIC INSTABILITIES REMAIN POORLY UNDERSTOOD. WE USED MICROARRAY SCREENING OF H. PYLORI-INFECTED HUMAN GASTRIC BIOPSY SPECIMENS TO IDENTIFY CANDIDATE GENES INVOLVED IN H. PYLORI-INDUCED HOST GENOMIC INSTABILITIES. WE FOUND UPREGULATION OF ATM EXPRESSION IN VIVO IN GASTRIC MUCOSAL CELLS INFECTED WITH H. PYLORI. USING GASTRIC CANCER CELL LINES, WE CONFIRMED THAT THE H. PYLORI-RELATED ACTIVATION OF ATM WAS DUE TO THE ACCUMULATION OF DNA DOUBLE-STRAND BREAKS (DSBS). DSBS WERE OBSERVED FOLLOWING INFECTION WITH BOTH CAG PATHOGENICITY ISLAND (PAI)-POSITIVE AND -NEGATIVE STRAINS, BUT THE EFFECT WAS MORE ROBUST WITH CAG PAI-POSITIVE STRAINS. THESE RESULTS ARE CONSISTENT WITH THE FACT THAT INFECTIONS WITH BOTH CAG PAI-POSITIVE AND -NEGATIVE STRAINS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS, BUT THE RISK IS HIGHER IN INDIVIDUALS INFECTED WITH CAG PAI-POSITIVE STRAINS. 2014 13 3231 33 HELICOBACTER PYLORI-INDUCED MODULATION OF THE PROMOTER METHYLATION OF WNT ANTAGONIST GENES IN GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS. BACKGROUND: THIS STUDY AIMED TO INVESTIGATE THE CHANGES IN THE PROMOTER METHYLATION AND GENE EXPRESSION OF MULTIPLE WNT ANTAGONISTS BETWEEN THE CHRONIC INFECTION AND ERADICATION OF HELICOBACTER PYLORI (H. PYLORI) IN GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS. METHODS: THE LEVELS OF METHYLATION AND CORRESPONDING MRNA EXPRESSION OF SEVEN WNT ANTAGONIST GENES (SFRP1, -2, -5, DKK1, -2, -3, WIF1) WERE COMPARED AMONG THE PATIENTS WITH H. PYLORI-POSITIVE GASTRIC CANCERS (GCS), AND H. PYLORI-POSITIVE AND H. PYLORI-NEGATIVE CONTROLS, BY QUANTITATIVE METHYLIGHT ASSAY AND REAL-TIME REVERSE TRANSCRIPTION (RT)-POLYMERASE CHAIN REACTION (PCR), RESPECTIVELY. THE CHANGES OF THE METHYLATION AND EXPRESSION LEVELS OF THE GENES WERE ALSO COMPARED BETWEEN THE H. PYLORI ERADICATION AND H. PYLORI-PERSISTENT GROUPS 1 YEAR AFTER ENDOSCOPIC RESECTION OF GCS. RESULTS: THE METHYLATION LEVELS OF SFRP AND DKK FAMILY GENES WERE SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED IN THE PATIENTS WITH H. PYLORI-POSITIVE GCS AND FOLLOWED BY H. PYLORI-POSITIVE CONTROLS COMPARED WITH H. PYLORI-NEGATIVE CONTROLS (P < 0.001). SFRP1, -2, AND DKK3 GENE EXPRESSION WAS STEPWISE DOWNREGULATED FROM H. PYLORI-NEGATIVE CONTROLS, H. PYLORI-POSITIVE CONTROLS, AND TO H. PYLORI-POSITIVE GCS (P < 0.05). AMONG THE WNT ANTAGONISTS, ONLY THE DEGREES OF METHYLATION AND DOWNREGULATION OF DKK3 WERE SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED AFTER H. PYLORI ERADICATION (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: EPIGENETIC SILENCING OF SFRP AND DKK FAMILY GENES MAY FACILITATE THE FORMATION OF AN EPIGENETIC FIELD DURING H. PYLORI-ASSOCIATED GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS. THE EPIGENETIC FIELD MAY NOT BE REVERSED EVEN AFTER H. PYLORI ERADICATION EXCEPT BY DKK3 METHYLATION. 2018 14 3396 25 HOST SHP1 PHOSPHATASE ANTAGONIZES HELICOBACTER PYLORI CAGA AND CAN BE DOWNREGULATED BY EPSTEIN-BARR VIRUS. MOST IF NOT ALL GASTRIC CANCERS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH CHRONIC INFECTION OF THE STOMACH MUCOSA WITH HELICOBACTER PYLORI CAGA-POSITIVE STRAINS(1-4). APPROXIMATELY 10% OF GASTRIC CANCERS ALSO HARBOUR EPSTEIN-BARR VIRUS (EBV) IN THE CANCER CELLS(5,6). FOLLOWING DELIVERY INTO GASTRIC EPITHELIAL CELLS VIA TYPE IV SECRETION(7,8), THE CAGA-ENCODED CAGA PROTEIN UNDERGOES TYROSINE PHOSPHORYLATION ON THE GLU-PRO-ILE-TYR-ALA (EPIYA) MOTIFS INITIALLY BY SRC FAMILY KINASES (SFKS) AND THEN BY C-ABL(9,10). TYROSINE-PHOSPHORYLATED CAGA BINDS TO THE PRO-ONCOGENIC PROTEIN TYROSINE PHOSPHATASE SHP2 AND THEREBY DEREGULATES THE PHOSPHATASE ACTIVITY(11,12), WHICH HAS BEEN CONSIDERED TO PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS(13). HERE WE SHOW THAT THE SHP2 HOMOLOGUE SHP1 INTERACTS WITH CAGA INDEPENDENTLY OF THE EPIYA MOTIF. THE INTERACTION POTENTIATES THE PHOSPHATASE ACTIVITY OF SHP1 THAT DAMPENS THE ONCOGENIC ACTION OF CAGA BY DEPHOSPHORYLATING THE CAGA EPIYA MOTIFS. IN VITRO INFECTION OF GASTRIC EPITHELIAL CELLS WITH EBV INDUCES SHP1 PROMOTER HYPERMETHYLATION, WHICH STRENGTHENS PHOSPHORYLATION-DEPENDENT CAGA ACTION VIA EPIGENETIC DOWNREGULATION OF SHP1 EXPRESSION. CLINICAL SPECIMENS OF EBV-POSITIVE GASTRIC CANCERS ALSO EXHIBIT SHP1 HYPERMETHYLATION WITH REDUCED SHP1 EXPRESSION. THE RESULTS REVEAL THAT SHP1 IS THE LONG-SOUGHT PHOSPHATASE THAT CAN ANTAGONIZE CAGA. AUGMENTED H. PYLORI CAGA ACTIVITY, VIA SHP1 INHIBITION, MIGHT ALSO CONTRIBUTE TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF EBV-POSITIVE GASTRIC CANCER. 2016 15 3221 23 HELICOBACTER PYLORI AND THE MOLECULAR PATHOGENESIS OF INTESTINAL-TYPE GASTRIC CARCINOMA. GASTRIC CARCINOMA IS AN INFLAMMATION-RELATED CANCER CAUSED BY LONG-TERM INFECTION WITH THE HUMAN BACTERIAL PATHOGEN, HELICOBACTER PYLORI. THE PATTERN OF ACUTE-ON-CHRONIC INFLAMMATION CAUSES PROGRESSIVE MUCOSAL DAMAGE WHICH MAY RESULT IN ATROPHY WITH METAPLASTIC EPITHELIA AND EVENTUALLY GASTRIC CANCER. RECENTLY, IT HAS BEEN RECOGNIZED THAT H. PYLORI CAN ALSO CAUSE GENETIC INSTABILITY SUCH AS DOUBLE-STRANDED DNA BREAKS AND CAN PRODUCE GENE ACTIVATION AND SILENCING VIA EPIGENETIC PATHWAYS. AS GENETIC INSTABILITY IS THE HALLMARK OF CANCER, WE HIGHLIGHT RECENT PROGRESS IN UNDERSTANDING THE GASTRIC CARCINOGENESIS IN RELATION TO H. PYLORI-RELATED INFLAMMATION, H. PYLORI-INDUCED DOUBLE-STRANDED DNA BREAKAGE AND ABERRANT GENE EXPRESSION AS WELL AS THE MECHANISMS AND ROLE OF H. PYLORI-ASSOCIATED EPIGENETIC CHANGE IN GENE EXPRESSION. 2014 16 3222 31 HELICOBACTER PYLORI ASSOCIATED CHRONIC GASTRITIS, CLINICAL SYNDROMES, PRECANCEROUS LESIONS, AND PATHOGENESIS OF GASTRIC CANCER DEVELOPMENT. HELICOBACTER PYLORI (H. PYLORI) INFECTION IS WELL KNOWN TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH THE DEVELOPMENT OF PRECANCEROUS LESIONS SUCH AS CHRONIC ATROPHIC GASTRITIS (AG), OR GASTRIC INTESTINAL METAPLASIA (GIM), AND CANCER. VARIOUS MOLECULAR ALTERATIONS ARE IDENTIFIED NOT ONLY IN GASTRIC CANCER (GC) BUT ALSO IN PRECANCEROUS LESIONS. H. PYLORI TREATMENT SEEMS TO IMPROVE AG AND GIM, BUT STILL REMAINS CONTROVERSIAL. IN CONTRAST, MANY STUDIES, INCLUDING META-ANALYSIS, SHOW THAT H. PYLORI ERADICATION REDUCES GC. MOLECULAR MARKERS DETECTED BY GENETIC AND EPIGENETIC ALTERATIONS RELATED TO CARCINOGENESIS REVERSE FOLLOWING H. PYLORI ERADICATION. THIS INDICATES THAT THESE CHANGES MAY BE AN IMPORTANT FACTOR IN THE IDENTIFICATION OF HIGH RISK PATIENTS FOR CANCER DEVELOPMENT. PATIENTS WHO UNDERWENT ENDOSCOPIC TREATMENT OF GC ARE AT HIGH RISK FOR DEVELOPMENT OF METACHRONOUS GC. A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL FROM JAPAN CONCLUDED THAT PROPHYLACTIC ERADICATION OF H. PYLORI AFTER ENDOSCOPIC RESECTION SHOULD BE USED TO PREVENT THE DEVELOPMENT OF METACHRONOUS GC, BUT RECENT RETROSPECTIVE STUDIES DID NOT SHOW THE TENDENCY. PATIENTS WITH PRECANCEROUS LESIONS (MOLECULAR ALTERATIONS) THAT DO NOT REVERSE AFTER H. PYLORI TREATMENT, REPRESENT THE "POINT OF NO RETURN" AND MAY BE AT HIGH RISK FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF GC. THEREFORE, EARLIER H. PYLORI ERADICATION SHOULD BE CONSIDERED FOR PREVENTING GC DEVELOPMENT PRIOR TO THE APPEARANCE OF PRECANCEROUS LESIONS. 2014 17 6871 28 [PATHOGENETIC IMPORTANCE OF HELICOBACTER PYLORI INFECTION]. H. PYLORI ARE ETIOLOGICAL FACTOR OF HUMAN ACUTE AND CHRONIC GASTRITIS. DEPENDING ON PATHOGENIC FACTORS OF MICROORGANISM AND POLYMORPHISM OF HUMAN GENES, CHRONIC GASTRITIS CAN BE A CAUSE FOR ULCERATIVE ENTERITIS OF THE DUODENUM OR STOMACH, GASTRIC ADENOCARCINOMA AND MALT-LYMPHOMA DEVELOPMENT. WE REVEALED GENETIC FEATURES OF BACTERIA, DETERMINED THE INTENSITY OF INFLAMMATION, SUCH AS PATHOGENIC FACTORS--CAG, PLASTIC REGION OF THE GENOME AND ADHESIN CODING GENES. EPIGENETIC CHANGES, FOR EXAMPLE THE METHYLATION OF E-CADHERIN GENE ASSOCIATED WITH H PYLORI, ARE CRUCIAL FOR CARCINOGENESIS. THEREBY, PREDISPOSITION OF CHRONIC GASTRITIS ASSOCIATED WITH H. PYLORI TO ULCERATIVE ENTERITIS OF THE DUODENUM, ULCERATIVE STOMACH DISEASE OR GASTRIC ADENOCARCINOMA DEPENDS ON TOPOGRAPHY, THE INTENSITY OF INFLAMMATION AND CHANGES OF ACID PRODUCTION IN THE STOMACH. 2012 18 4725 31 NORMAL GASTRIC TISSUE HELICOBACTER PYLORI INFECTION IS ASSOCIATED WITH EPIGENETIC AGE ACCELERATION, INCREASED MITOTIC TICK RATE, TISSUE CELL COMPOSITION, AND NATURAL KILLER CELL METHYLATION ALTERATIONS. BACKGROUND: GASTRIC ADENOCARCINOMAS ARE A LEADING CAUSE OF GLOBAL MORTALITY, ASSOCIATED WITH CHRONIC INFECTION WITH HELICOBACTER PYLORI . THE MECHANISMS BY WHICH INFECTION WITH H. PYLORI CONTRIBUTES TO CARCINOGENESIS ARE NOT WELL UNDERSTOOD. RECENT STUDIES FROM SUBJECTS WITH AND WITHOUT GASTRIC CANCER HAVE IDENTIFIED SIGNIFICANT DNA METHYLATION ALTERATIONS IN NORMAL GASTRIC MUCOSA ASSOCIATED WITH H. PYLORI INFECTION AND GASTRIC CANCER RISK. HERE WE FURTHER INVESTIGATED DNA METHYLATION ALTERATIONS IN NORMAL GASTRIC MUCOSA IN GASTRIC CANCER CASES (N = 42) AND CONTROL SUBJECTS (N = 42) WITH H. PYLORI INFECTION DATA. WE ASSESSED TISSUE CELL TYPE COMPOSITION, DNA METHYLATION ALTERATIONS WITHIN CELL POPULATIONS, EPIGENETIC AGING, AND REPETITIVE ELEMENT METHYLATION. RESULTS: IN NORMAL GASTRIC MUCOSA OF BOTH GASTRIC CANCER CASES AND CONTROL SUBJECTS, WE OBSERVED INCREASED EPIGENETIC AGE ACCELERATION ASSOCIATED WITH H. PYLORI INFECTION. WE ALSO OBSERVED AN INCREASED MITOTIC TICK RATE ASSOCIATED WITH H. PYLORI INFECTION IN BOTH GASTRIC CANCER CASES AND CONTROLS. SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN IMMUNE CELL POPULATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH H. PYLORI INFECTION IN NORMAL TISSUE FROM CANCER CASES AND CONTROLS WERE IDENTIFIED USING DNA METHYLATION CELL TYPE DECONVOLUTION. WE ALSO FOUND NATURAL KILLER CELL-SPECIFIC METHYLATION ALTERATIONS IN NORMAL MUCOSA FROM GASTRIC CANCER PATIENTS WITH H. PYLORI INFECTION. CONCLUSIONS: OUR FINDINGS FROM NORMAL GASTRIC MUCOSA PROVIDE INSIGHT INTO UNDERLYING CELLULAR COMPOSITION AND EPIGENETIC ASPECTS OF H. PYLORI ASSOCIATED GASTRIC CANCER ETIOLOGY. 2023 19 600 40 BETA-DEFENSINS AND ANALOGS IN HELICOBACTER PYLORI INFECTIONS: MRNA EXPRESSION LEVELS, DNA METHYLATION, AND ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITY. ANTIMICROBIAL PEPTIDES CAN PROTECT THE GASTRIC MUCOSA FROM BACTERIA, BUT HELICOBACTER PYLORI (H. PYLORI) CAN EQUALLY COLONIZE THE GASTRIC APPARATUS. TO UNDERSTAND BETA-DEFENSIN FUNCTION IN H. PYLORI-ASSOCIATED CHRONIC GASTRITIS, WE INVESTIGATED SUSCEPTIBILITY, HUMAN BETA-DEFENSIN MRNA EXPRESSION, AND DNA METHYLATION CHANGES TO PROMOTERS IN THE GASTRIC MUCOSA WITH OR WITHOUT H. PYLORI INFECTION. WE STUDIED THE EXPRESSION OF HBD2 (GENE NAME DEFB4A), HBD3 (DEFB103A), AND HBD4 (DEFB104) USING REAL-TIME PCR IN 15 CONTROL AND 10 H. PYLORI INFECTION PATIENT GASTRIC SPECIMENS. THIS STUDY DEMONSTRATES THAT H. PYLORI INFECTION IS RELATED TO GASTRIC ENHANCEMENT OF INDUCIBLE HBD2, BUT INDUCIBLE HBD3 AND HBD4 EXPRESSION LEVELS REMAINED UNCHANGED. HBD2 GENE METHYLATION LEVELS WERE OVERALL HIGHER IN H. PYLORI-NEGATIVE SAMPLES THAN IN H. PYLORI-POSITIVE SAMPLES. WE ALSO ASSESSED ANTIMICROBIAL SUSCEPTIBILITY USING GROWTH ON BLOOD AGAR. THE H. PYLORI STRAIN TOX+ WAS SUSCEPTIBLE TO ALL DEFENSINS TESTED AND THEIR ANALOGS (3N, 3NI). THESE RESULTS SHOW THAT HBD2 IS INVOLVED IN GASTRITIS DEVELOPMENT DRIVEN BY H. PYLORI, WHICH FACILITATES THE CREATION OF AN EPIGENETIC FIELD DURING H. PYLORI-ASSOCIATED GASTRIC TUMORIGENESIS. 2019 20 672 40 BRAF, KRAS AND HELICOBACTER PYLORI EPIGENETIC CHANGES-ASSOCIATED CHRONIC GASTRITIS IN EGYPTIAN PATIENTS WITH AND WITHOUT GASTRIC CANCER. WE AIMED TO STUDY MLH1 AND MGMT METHYLATION STATUS IN HELICOBACTER PYLORI-ASSOCIATED CHRONIC GASTRITIS IN EGYPTIAN PATIENTS WITH AND WITHOUT GASTRIC CANCER. 39 PATIENTS WERE INCLUDED IN OUR STUDY. THEY WERE DIVIDED INTO 2 GROUPS; PATIENTS WITHOUT (GROUP I) AND WITH GASTRIC ADENOCARCINOMA (GROUP II). PATIENTS WERE SUBJECTED TO CLINICAL EXAMINATION, ABDOMINAL ULTRASOUND AND UPPER ENDOSCOPY FOR GASTRIC BIOPSY. BIOPSIES WERE SUBJECTED TO UREASE TEST, HISTOLOGICAL EXAMINATION, AND DNA PURIFICATION. H. PYLORI, BRAF, KRAS, MLH1 AND MGMT METHYLATION WERE ASSESSED BY QUANTITATIVE PCR. DNA SEQUENCING WAS PERFORMED TO ASSESS BRAF AND KRAS GENES MUTATION. QPCR OF H. PYLORI WAS SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER IN PATIENTS WITH ADENOCARCINOMA (GROUP II) THAN THOSE WITHOUT ADENOCARCINOMA (GROUP I); WITH A P < 0.001 AS WELL AS IN PATIENTS WITH AGE ABOVE 50 YEARS WITH A P VALUE = 0.008. BY APPLYING LOGISTIC REGRESSION ANALYSIS IT WAS REPORTED THAT THE H. PYLORI QPCR IS A SIGNIFICANT PREDICTOR TO THE ADENOCARCINOMA WITH OR = 1.025 (95 % CI: 1. 002-1.048), WITH SENSITIVITY OF 90 % AND SPECIFICITY OF 100 %. ADENOCARCINOMA PATIENTS HAD A SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER MEAN AGE AND LEVELS OF H. PYLORI, BRAF, K-RAS, METHYLATED MGMT AND METHYLATED MLH1 THAN THOSE OF GASTRITIS PATIENTS. DNA SEQUENCE ANALYSIS OF BRAF (CODON 12) AND KRAS (CODON 600) HAD GENES MUTATION IN GASTRIC ADENOCARCINOMA VERSUS CHRONIC GASTRITIS. CONCLUSION: H. PYLORI MAY CAUSE EPIGENETIC CHANGES PREDISPOSING THE PATIENTS TO CANCER STOMACH. ESTIMATION OF H. PYLORI BY QPCR CAN BE A GOOD PREDICTOR TO ADENOCARCINOMA. BRAF AND KRAS GENES MUTATION WERE REVELED IN GASTRITIS AND ADENOCARCINOMA PATIENTS. 2016