Brief Article
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World J Gastroenterol. Mar 21, 2012; 18(11): 1257-1261
Published online Mar 21, 2012. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v18.i11.1257
Bacterial flora concurrent with Helicobacter pylori in the stomach of patients with upper gastrointestinal diseases
Yuan Hu, Li-Hua He, Di Xiao, Guo-Dong Liu, Yi-Xin Gu, Xiao-Xia Tao, Jian-Zhong Zhang
Yuan Hu, Li-Hua He, Di Xiao, Guo-Dong Liu, Yi-Xin Gu, Xiao-Xia Tao, Jian-Zhong Zhang, State Key Laboratory for Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing 102206, China
Author contributions: Hu Y and He LH contributed equally to this work; Hu Y and Zhang JZ designed the research; Hu Y, He LH, Xiao D, Liu GD, Gu YX and Tao XX performed bacteria culture and identification; Hu Y and He LH analyzed data; Hu Y and Zhang JZ wrote the paper.
Supported by The major projects of infectious disease prevention and control in China, including AIDS and viral hepatitis, No. 2008ZX10004-002 and No. 2009ZX10603
Correspondence to: Jian-Zhong Zhang, Professor, State Key Laboratory for Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, National Institute for Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 155 Changbai Road, Changping District, Beijing 102206, China. zhangjianzhong@icdc.cn
Telephone: +86-10-58900707 Fax: +86-10-58900707
Received: April 14, 2011
Revised: August 10, 2011
Accepted: October 14, 2011
Published online: March 21, 2012
Abstract

AIM: To investigate the non-Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) bacterial flora concurrent with H. pylori infection.

METHODS: A total of 103 gastric biopsy specimens from H. pylori positive patients were selected for bacterial culture. All the non-H. pylori bacterial isolates were identified by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS).

RESULTS: A total of 201 non-H. pylori bacterial isolates were cultivated from 67 (65.0%) of the 103 gastric samples, including 153 isolates identified successfully at species level and 48 at genus level by MALDI-TOF MS. The dominant species were Streptococcus, Neisseria, Rothia and Staphylococcus, which differed from the predominantly acid resistant species reported previously in healthy volunteers. The prevalence of non-H. pylori bacteria was higher in non-ulcer dyspepsia group than in gastric ulcer group (100% vs 42.9%, P < 0.001). Six bacterial species with urease activity (Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus warneri, Staphylococcus capitis, Staphylococcus aureus, Brevibacterium spp. and Klebsiella pneumoniae) were also isolated.

CONCLUSION: There is a high prevalence of the non-H. pylori bacteria concurrent with H. pylori infection, and the non-H. pylori bacteria may also play important as-yet-undiscovered roles in the pathogenesis of stomach disorders.

Keywords: Non-Helicobacter pylori; Bacterial flora; Gastrointestinal diseases; Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry