H Pylori
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World J Gastroenterol. Dec 7, 2006; 12(45): 7278-7284
Published online Dec 7, 2006. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v12.i45.7278
Relationship between the severity of hepatitis C virus-related liver disease and the presence of Helicobacter species in the liver: A prospective study
Laurent Castéra, Anne Pedeboscq, Marcia Rocha, Brigitte Le Bail, Corinne Asencio, Victor de Lédinghen, Pierre-Henri Bernard, Christophe Laurent, Marie-Edith Lafon, Maylis Capdepont, Patrice Couzigou, Paulette Bioulac-Sage, Charles Balabaud, Francis Mégraud, Armelle Ménard
Laurent Castéra, Pierre-Henri Bernard, Charles Balabaud, Service d’Hépato-Gastroentérologie, Hôpital St-André, Bordeaux, France
Laurent Castéra, Victor de Lédinghen, Patrice Couzigou, Service d’Hépato-Gastroentérologie, Hôpital Haut Lévêque, Pessac, France
Anne Pedeboscq, Marcia Rocha, Corinne Asencio, Francis Mégraud, Armelle Ménard, INSERM, ERI 10, Laboratoire de Bactériologie, Université Victor Segalen Bordeaux 2, Bordeaux, France
Brigitte Le Bail, Paulette Bioulac-Sage, INSERM E0362 Groupe de Recherche pour l’Étude du Foie, UniversitéVictor Segalen Bordeaux 2, Bordeaux, France
Brigitte Le Bail, Paulette Bioulac-Sage, Service d’Anatomie Pathologique, Hôpital Pellegrin, Bordeaux, France
Christophe Laurent, Maylis Capdepont, Service de Chirurgie Digestive, Hôpital St-André, Bordeaux, France
Marie-Edith Lafon, Laboratoire de Virologie, UniversitéVictor Segalen Bordeaux 2, Bordeaux, France
Correspondence to: Francis Mégraud, Laboratoire de Bactériologie, Hôpital Pellegrin, Bordeaux cedex 33076, France. francis.megraud@chu-bordeaux.fr
Telephone: +33-5-56795977 Fax: +33-5-56796018
Received: April 12, 2006
Revised: April 28, 2006
Accepted: October 10, 2006
Published online: December 7, 2006
Abstract

AIM: To determine the presence of Helicobacter species DNA in the liver of chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients with and without cirrhosis as compared to controls, and to identify the bacterial species involved.

METHODS: Seventy-nine consecutive patients (HBV and HIV negative) with a liver sample obtained after liver biopsy or hepatic resection were studied: 41 with CHC without cirrhosis, 12 with CHC and cirrhosis, and 26 controls (HCV negative). Polymerase chain reactions (PCRs) targeting Helicobacter 16S rDNA and species-specific were performed on DNA extracted from the liver. A gastric infection with H pylori was determined by serology and confirmed by 13C-urea breath test.

RESULTS: Overall, Helicobacter 16S rDNA was found in 16 patients (20.2%). Although positive cases tended to be higher in CHC patients with cirrhosis (41.6%) than in those without cirrhosis (17.0%) or in controls (15.4%), the difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.08). H pylori-like DNA was identified in 12 cases and H. pullorum DNA in 2, while 2 cases remained unidenti-fied. Gastric infection with H pylori was found in only 2 of these patients.

CONCLUSION: Our results do not confirm the associ-ation of Helicobacter species DNA in the liver of CHC patients with advanced liver disease. The lack of correlation between positive H pylori serology and the presence of H pylori-like DNA in the liver may indicate the presence of a variant of this species.

Keywords: Hepatitis C virus; Hepatitis; Cirrhosis; Helicobacter