Mice lacking NF-κB1 exhibit marked DNA damage responses and more severe gastric pathology in response to intraperitoneal tamoxifen administration.

Tamoxifen (TAM) has recently been shown to cause acute gastric atrophy and metaplasia in mice. We have previously demonstrated that the outcome of Helicobacter felis infection, which induces similar gastric lesions in mice, is altered by deletion of specific NF-κB subunits. Nfkb1-/- mice developed more severe gastric atrophy than wild-type (WT) mice 6 weeks after H. felis infection. In contrast, Nfkb2-/- mice were protected from this pathology. We therefore hypothesized that gastric lesions induced by TAM may be similarly regulated by signaling via NF-κB subunits. Groups of five female C57BL/6 (WT), Nfkb1-/-, Nfkb2-/- and c-Rel-/- mice were administered 150 mg/kg TAM by IP injection. Seventy-two hours later, gastric corpus tissues were taken for quantitative histological assessment. In addition, groups of six female WT and Nfkb1-/- mice were exposed to 12 Gy γ-irradiation. Gastric epithelial apoptosis was quantified 6 and 48 h after irradiation. TAM induced gastric epithelial lesions in all strains of mice, but this was more severe in Nfkb1-/- mice than in WT mice. Nfkb1-/- mice exhibited more severe parietal cell loss than WT mice, had increased gastric epithelial expression of Ki67 and had an exaggerated gastric epithelial DNA damage response as quantified by γH2AX. To investigate whether the difference in gastric epithelial DNA damage response of Nfkb1-/- mice was unique to TAM-induced DNA damage or a generic consequence of DNA damage, we also assessed gastric epithelial apoptosis following γ-irradiation. Six hours after γ-irradiation, gastric epithelial apoptosis was increased in the gastric corpus and antrum of Nfkb1-/- mice. NF-κB1-mediated signaling regulates the development of gastric mucosal pathology following TAM administration. This is associated with an exaggerated gastric epithelial DNA damage response. This aberrant response appears to reflect a more generic sensitization of the gastric mucosa of Nfkb1-/- mice to DNA damage.

Phosphatidylethanolamine, but not Phosphatidylglycerol-Cardiolipin, Isolated from Two Species of Helicobacter Binds Cholesterol over Cholesteryl Ester.

This study demonstrated that the cells of Helicobacter felis and Helicobacter cinaedi spontaneously absorb cholesterol added to the medium. A recent study by our group has revealed that phosphatidylethanolamine (PtdEtn) of Helicobacter pylori contains myristic acid as the most predominant saturated fatty acid and that the PtdEtn of this bacterium binds cholesterol more selectively than cholesteryl ester. We, therefore, isolated the PtdEtn from the two Helicobacter species to analyze the hydrophobic interaction between cholesterol and its glycerophospholipid. PtdEtn of the Helicobacter bacteria interacted more selectively with cholesterol than with cholesteryl ester, and the degree of the selective binding of cholesterol was higher in the PtdEtn than in the phosphatidylglycerol-cardiolipin of the same bacteria. These results suggest the possibility that the cells of H. felis and H. cinaedi may contain abundant PtdEtn with myristic acid. On this basis, we analyzed the PtdEtn molecular species of the Helicobacter bacteria and demonstrated that the PtdEtn containing myristic acid accounts for more than 35% in the total PtdEtn. These results suggest that the myristoyl PtdEtn takes part in the absorption of cholesterol in H. felis and H. cinaedi.

Distinct susceptibility of induction of methylation of p16ink4a and p19arf CpG islands by X-radiation and chemical carcinogen in mice.

Inactivation of the tumor suppressor genes p16(ink4a) and p19(arf)/p14(arf) by hypermethylation of promoter CpG islands occurs frequently in various tumors. The aim of this study is to investigate the difference of susceptibility of methylation induced by carcinogens between p16(ink4a) and p19(arf). The methylation status of both genes was analyzed by denaturing high performance liquid chromatography (DHPLC) and bisulfite-sequencing, respectively. The expression level of P16 protein was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. Results showed that p16(ink4a) methylation was detected in the glandular stomach, small intestine and other organs of mice following X-radiation and subsequent bone marrow transplantation (BMT), but not in mock control mice. We found that the intestinal tract was the most sensitive organ for X-ray induced p16(ink4a) methylation. Loss of P16 protein expression was observed in the intestinal tissues of X-irradiated mice, but not in the mock control mice. Interestingly, p19(arf) methylation was not observed in the gastrointestinal tissues of the negative control mice following X-radiation/BMT. However, administration of N-nitrosomethylurea and/or Helicobacter felis infection promoted methylation of p19(arf) CpG islands in the gastrointestinal tracts, but did not promote p16(ink4a) methylation. In addition, p16(ink4a) methylation was detected not only in the X-irradiated GFP-negative tissue cells, but also in the GFP-positive bone marrow-derived cells that were transplanted into the BMT mice after X-radiation. In conclusion, the methylation susceptibility of p16(ink4a) and p19(arf) to carcinogen treatments was remarkably different: X-radiation indirectly induces systemic p16(ink4a) methylation, especially in the intestine; whereas N-nitrosomethylurea and/or H. felis infection induce p19(arf) methylation in their target organs.

Gastric Helicobacter infection induces iron deficiency in the INS-GAS mouse.

There is increasing evidence from clinical and population studies for a role of H. pylori infection in the aetiology of iron deficiency. Rodent models of Helicobacter infection are helpful for investigating any causal links and mechanisms of iron deficiency in the host. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of gastric Helicobacter infection on iron deficiency and host iron metabolism/transport gene expression in hypergastrinemic INS-GAS mice. INS-GAS mice were infected with Helicobacter felis for 3, 6 and 9 months. At post mortem, blood was taken for assessment of iron status and gastric mucosa for pathology, immunohistology and analysis of gene expression. Chronic Helicobacter infection of INS- GAS mice resulted in decreased serum iron, transferrin saturation and hypoferritinemia and increased Total iron binding capacity (TIBC). Decreased serum iron concentrations were associated with a concomitant reduction in the number of parietal cells, strengthening the association between hypochlorhydria and gastric Helicobacter-induced iron deficiency. Infection with H. felis for nine months was associated with decreased gastric expression of iron metabolism regulators hepcidin, Bmp4 and Bmp6 but increased expression of Ferroportin 1, the iron efflux protein, iron absorption genes such as Divalent metal transporter 1, Transferrin receptor 1 and also Lcn2 a siderophore-binding protein. The INS-GAS mouse is therefore a useful model for studying Helicobacter-induced iron deficiency. Furthermore, the marked changes in expression of gastric iron transporters following Helicobacter infection may be relevant to the more rapid development of carcinogenesis in the Helicobacter infected INS-GAS model.

Crystal structure and functional insight of HP0420-homolog from Helicobacter felis.

Helicobacter pylori infect more than half of the world's population and are considered a cause of peptic ulcer disease and gastric cancer. Recently, hypothetical gene HP0421 was identified in H. pylori as a cholesterol alpha-glucosyltransferase, which is required to synthesize cholesteryl glucosides, essential cell wall components of the bacteria. In the same gene-cluster, HP0420 was co-identified, whose function remains unknown. Here we report the crystal structure of HP0420-homolog of H. felis (HF0420) to gain insight into the function of HP0420. The crystal structure, combined with size-exclusion chromatography, reveals that HF0420 adopts a homodimeric hot-dog fold. The crystal structure suggests that HF0420 has enzymatic activity that involves a conserved histidine residue at the end of the central alpha-helix. Subsequent biochemical studies provide clues to the function of HP0420 and HF0420.

Laboratory appraisal of optimal gaseous conditions for growth of zoonotic Helicobacter felis ATCC 49179.

An attempt was made to assess the hitherto undescribed optimal gaseous conditions for growth of zoonotic Helicobacter felis, focusing on the ratio of spiral-forms amongst the whole cells examined. The largest mean colony diameter was obtained under the gaseous condition of O(2) 12% and CO(2) 10%. In analyzing the five day old colonies, the highest percentage of spiral forms (85.5%) was observed under the condition of O(2) 18% and CO(2) 5%. In contrast, the lowest percentage of spiral forms (2.3%) was demonstrated under the condition of O(2) 1% and CO(2) 10%. The condition of O(2) 12% and CO(2) 10% was concluded to be optimal for obtaining cells with the largest colony sizes, although colonies proliferated under such conditions definitely contain many more coccoid cells than spiral forms. In culturing H. felis strains, optimal gaseous conditions should be employed according to the purposes or preferences of study designs.