Open AccessCell surface characteristics of Helicobacter pylori
Author(s) -
Moran Anthony P.
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
fems immunology & medical microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1574-695X
pISSN - 0928-8244
DOI - 10.1111/j.1574-695x.1995.tb00043.x
Subject(s) - bacterial adhesin , helicobacter pylori , biology , mucin , secretion , spirillaceae , microbiology and biotechnology , pathogen , immunology , helicobacter , gastritis , virulence , biochemistry , genetics , gene
Helicobacter pylori is an important gastroduodenal pathogen of humans. Immunological and structural studies have been performed on the phospholipids, lipopolysaccharides (LPS) and some surface proteins of H. pylori strains. H. pylori LPS has, in general, low immunological activity and this property may aid the survival of this chronic infection. Nevertheless, H. pylori LPS has been found to influence the quality of gastric mucin and to stimulate pepsinogen secretion, thereby contributing to gastric disease. A number of putative adhesins of the bacterium have been described. This multiplicity of adhesins may reflect that H. pylori adherence is a multi‐step process involving different interactions, and that different adhesins may mediate adherence to various sites in gastric tissue.