Differences in interleukin 8 expression in Helicobacter pylori-infected gastric mucosa tissues from patients in Bhutan and the Dominican Republic.

The outcomes of Helicobacter pylori infection vary geographically. H pylori strains, disease presentation, and environments differ markedly in Bhutan and Dominican Republic. The aims were to compare the strains, histology, and expression of interleukin (IL) 8 and IL-10 from gastric mucosa from the 2 countries. H pylori status was assessed by the combination of rapid urease test, culture, and histology. Histology was evaluated using the updated Sydney System, and cytokines in gastric biopsies were measured using real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). There were 138 subjects from Bhutan and 155 from Dominican Republic. The prevalence of H pylori infection was 65% and 59%, respectively. The genotype of cagA was predominantly East Asian type in Bhutan versus Western type in Dominican Republic. Gastritis severity was significantly higher in H pylori-infected subjects from Bhutan than those from Dominican Republic. IL-8 expression by H pylori infection was 5.5-fold increased in Bhutan versus 3-fold in Dominican Republic (P < .001); IL-10 expression was similar. IL-8 expression levels among H pylori-infected cases tended to be positively correlated with polymorphonuclear leucocyte and monocyte infiltration scores in both countries. IL-8 expression among those with grade 2 and 3 polymorphonuclear leucocyte and monocyte infiltration was significantly higher in Bhutan than in Dominican Republic. The difference in IL-8 expression in the 2 countries is reflected in the different disease pattern between them. Whether the dominant factor is differences in H pylori virulence, in host-H pylori-environmental interactions, genetic factors or all remains unclear. However, severity of inflammation appears to be a critical factor in disease pathogenesis. We compared IL-8 messenger RNA levels between the high gastric cancer risk country, Bhutan (mainly East Asian-type H pylori), and the lower gastric cancer risk country, Dominican Republic (mainly Western-type H pylori).

Virulence genes of Helicobacter pylori in the Dominican Republic.

Although the incidence of gastric cancer in the Dominican Republic is not high, the disease remains a significant health problem. We first conducted a detailed analysis of Helicobacter pylori status in the Dominican Republic. In total, 158 patients (103 females and 55 males; mean age 47.1±16.2 years) were recruited. The status of H. pylori infection was determined based on four tests: rapid urease test, culture test, histological test and immunohistochemistry. The status of cagA and vacA genotypes in H. pylori was examined using PCR and gene sequencing. The overall prevalence of H. pylori infection was 58.9 %. No relationship was found between the H. pylori infection rate and the age range of 17-91 years. Even in the youngest group (patients aged <29 years), the H. pylori infection rate was 62.5 %. Peptic ulcer was found in 23 patients and gastric cancer was found in one patient. The H. pylori infection rate in patients with peptic ulcer was significantly higher than that in patients with gastritis (82.6 versus 54.5 %, P<0.01). The cagA-positive/vacA s1m1 genotype was the most prevalent (43/64, 67.2 %). Compared with H. pylori-negative patients, H. pylori-positive patients showed more severe gastritis. Furthermore, the presence of cagA was related to the presence of more severe gastritis. All CagA-positive strains had Western-type CagA. In conclusion, we found that H. pylori infection is a risk factor for peptic ulcer in the Dominican Republic. Patients with cagA-positive H. pylori could be at higher risk for severe inflammation and atrophy.

Comparison of prevalence of chronic atrophic gastritis in Japan, China, Tanzania, and the Dominican Republic.

PURPOSE: To compare the prevalence of chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG) in Japan, China, Tanzania, and the Dominican Republic and to assess the usefulness of Helicobacter pylori infection and serum gastrin level as markers of CAG. METHODS: The subjects were volunteers from local communities in Japan (n=859), China (n=1741), Tanzania (n=573), and the Dominican Republic (n=1215). Each individual underwent a health checkup and blood sampling for measurement of serum pepsinogen I and II, pepsinogen I /II ratio, serum gastrin, and H. pylori antibodies, and responded to a questionnaire on upper digestive tract diseases. RESULTS: The prevalences of H. pylori infection (23.5-96.1%), CAG (5.6-60.4%), and serum gastrin (62.0-136.5 pg/ml) varied by age, sex, and country. Serum gastrin level for men differed in each country according to age. In Tanzanian men, the median gastrin level (101.0 pg/ml) was the highest in the 40 to 49 years age group (p < 0.01) while there was no significant difference among different age groups in Tanzanian women. Serum gastrin level in subjects > or = 70 years was higher than in other age groups in both sexes in the Dominican Republic (males, 92.5, females, 136.5 pg/ml). The prevalence of H. pylori infection increased (p < 0.01) with advancing age in Japan (only for women) and the Dominican Republic but was high in all age groups of both sexes in China and Tanzania. The prevalence of CAG increased (p < 0.01) with age in both sexes in Japan, China (women only), and the Dominican Republic, but not in Tanzania. The odds ratio of CAG in H. pylori infected subjects was 5.3 times that in H. pylori-negative subjects. The odds ratio of CAG increased by 0.6%/1 pg/ml increase in serum gastrin. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicated that H. pylori infection, serum gastrin, and advancing age are good markers of CAG and that the prevalence of CAG is the highest in Japan.

Seroprevalence of IgG specific for dengue virus among adults and children in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

The seroprevalence of dengue (DEN) virus-specific IgG was determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay among 1,008 adults recruited at blood banks and among 201 children less than 10 years old visiting a hospital in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Most (98%, 987 of 1,008) of the adults and 56% (113 of 201) of the children were positive for DEN virus-specific IgG. Among adults, there were no significant differences in the prevalence by age, sex, and residential area of the participants. Among children, the prevalence of DEN virus-specific IgG increased with age (1-2 years old, 0-5%; 3-6 years old, 25-65%; and >/=7 years old, 76-92%). The prevalence in 50% of those less than one year of age was probably due to maternal antibody transfer. Neutralization tests of adult samples indicate that DEN virus infections with different serotypes have occurred sequentially or simultaneously among the inhabitants of Santo Domingo.

Seroprevalence of IgG specific for dengue virus among adults and children in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

The seroprevalence of dengue (DEN) virus-specific IgG wa determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay among 1,008 adults recruited at blood banks and among 201 children less than 10 years old visiting a hospital in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Most (98 percent, 97 of 1,008) of the adults and 56 percent (113 of 201) of the children were positive for DEN virus-specific IgG. Among adults, there were no significant differences in the prevalence by age, sex, and residential area of the participants. Among children, the prevalence of DEN virus-specific IgG increased with age (1-2 years old, 0-5 percent; 3-6 years old, 25-65 percent; and >/= 7 years old, 76-92 percent). The prevalence in 50 percent of those less than one year of age was probably due to maternal antibody transfer. Neutralization tests of adult samples indicate that DEN virus infections with different serotypes have occured sequentially or simultaneously among the inhabitants of Santo Domingo (AU)

Seroprevalences ofHelicobacter pylori infection and chronic atrophic gastritis in the united Republic of Tanzania and the Dominican Republic.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this survey was to compare the seroprevalences ofHelicobacter Pylori (H. pylori) and chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG) in Tanzania and the Dominican Republic, both of which are tropical countries, and thereafter compare the prevalences in Tanzania and the Dominican Republic with prevalences from our previous studies done in Japan (1991) and China (1996/97). METHODS: Community-based study in which 573 inhabitants of Tanzania and 1,215 inhabitants of the Dominican Republic answered detailed questionnaires on upper digestive tract diseases, and then underwent screening for gastric cancer by serum pepsinogen and testing for antibody toH. pylori. RESULTS: After adjusting to the 'Age-Standardized Rate' (ASR) using the world population in 1995, the seroprevalences ofH. pylori infection in male and female subjects for Tanzania (m=85.3% & f=88.2%) were very high compared to those for the Dominican Republic (m=63.5% & f=62.4%) and Japan (m=62.0% & f=46.8%), and similar to those of China (m=78.0% & f=77.3%). Also, the agestandardized prevalences of CAG in males and females for Tanzania (m-0.237& f=0.458). were higher than those of the Dominican Republic (m=0.168 & f=0.211) and China (m=0.111 & f=0.107) and compared well with those of Japan (m=0.266 & f=0.352). CONCLUSIONS: Although Tanzania and the Dominican Republic are both developing countries, Tanzania had a very high age-standardized prevalence ofH. pylori and CAG compared to that of the Dominican Republic, which showed a trend similar to that of Japan.

Alteraciones ultraestructurales inducidas por virus dengue en cultivos celulares / Ultra structural induced alterations for dengue virus in cultured cells

Los cuatro serotipos del virus dengue inducen un efecto citopático (ECP) leve en cultivos celulares provenientes de mamíferos o mosquitos, como son las células Vero y las C6/36, respectivamente. Este ha sido descrito al microscopio electrónico de transmisión (MET); pero las posibles alteraciones a nivel de la superficie de las células infectadas no han sido descrita. Por tal razón investigamos el ECP al MET y al ME de rastreo (MER). Ambas líneas celulares (Vero y C6/36) fueron infectadas con Den-1, se fijaron y procesaron para MET y MER. Las células Vero mostraron vacuolización y algunas veces fusión celular; pero su superficie fue similar en las células sin infectar. Las células C6/36 mostraron un citoplasma totalmente vacuolizado y en el cual sólo se identificó el núcleo y microtúbulos. Al MER esa células pesentaban abundantes filipodia con cadenas de cuerpos esferoides, similares a un rosario, que podrían corresponder a las vacuolas