Innate Immune Responses in Pediatric Patients with Gastritis—A Trademark of Infection or Chronic Inflammation?

Review of foodborne helicobacteriosis

Helicobacteriosis is a common bacterial infection caused by Helicobacter pylori. It affects the stomach and small intestines, leading to inflammation. Bacteria can spread through contaminated food or water. This review explores the role of food in the transmission of H. pylori, drawing on research from the past three decades. People commonly acquire the infection during childhood, often from close family members. Crowded living conditions can also contribute to the spread. This review also discusses various risk factors and highlights the challenges of detecting H. pylori, particularly in its dormant form. Techniques like ribotyping and restriction fragment length polymorphism hold promise for tracing transmission routes, but more long-term studies are needed to account for potential confounding factors.

Posttraumatic Osteomyelitis Risks Associated with NLRP3 Gene Polymorphisms in the Chinese Population

The purpose of this case-control study was to examine possible links between NLRP3 gene polymorphisms and the risk of developing posttraumatic osteomyelitis (PTOM) in the Chinese population. A total of 306 patients with PTOM and 368 normal controls were genotyped for NLRP3 (rs35829419, rs10754558, rs7525979, rs4612666), ELP2 (rs1785929, rs1789547, rs1785928, rs12185396, rs681757, rs8299, rs2032206, rs559289), STAT3 (rs4796793, rs744166, rs1026916, rs2293152, rs1053004), CASP1 (rs501192, rs580253, rs556205, rs530537), NFKBIA (rs696), NFKB1 (rs4648068), CARD8 (rs204321), and CD14 (rs2569190) using the genotyping technique SNaPshot. The genotype distributions of NLRP3 gene rs10754558 (p = 0.047) and rs7525979 (p = 0.048) significantly differed between the patients and the healthy controls. Additionally, heterozygous models indicated a significant association between NLRP3 rs10754558 and the likelihood of developing PTOM (OR = 1.600, p = 0.039), as did recessive and homozygous models of NLRP3 rs7525979 (OR = 0.248, p = 0.019 and 0.239, p = 0.016, respectively). Collectively, our findings suggest that, in the Chinese population, the risk of developing PTOM was increased by the association between NLRP3 rs10754558 and rs7525979. Therefore, our findings may provide novel insights and guidance in the prevention and development of PTOM.

Worldwide Prevalence and Risk Factors of Helicobacter pylori Infection in Children

Helicobacter pylori is usually acquired during childhood. The reports from the last two decades pointed out a decrease in H. pylori prevalence across geographical areas worldwide compared to previously reported data. Most of the studies performed in America found an overall H. pylori infection prevalence of approximately 50%. The most important risk factors in America include being male, poor adherence or difficult access to treatment, and the lack of in-home water service. Despite the descending trend in prevalence worldwide, the overall prevalence in Africa remains very high (70%). Nevertheless, the prevalence of H. pylori in children without gastrointestinal who underwent screening was reported to be only 14.2%. The main risk factors in Africa are having a traditional pit or no toilet, poverty, birth order, source of drinking water, or being a farmer. Asia seems to have the widest variations in terms of H. pylori prevalence. Several risk factors were reported in Asia to be associated with this infection, such as lower income and educational level, house crowding, rural residence, ethnicity, the use of tanks as water supplies, alcohol drinking, active smoking, eating spicy food or raw uncooked vegetables, poor living conditions and sanitation. The overall prevalence of H. pylori infection in European children is almost 25%. Portugal has the highest prevalence of all European countries at 66.2% in children 13 years of age. The risk factors in European individuals consist of living in rural areas, eating unwashed fruits and vegetables, not washing hands after school, low parental education and unemployment, and short education duration. Further studies are required to identify the precise mechanisms involved in the discrepancies of H. pylori prevalence worldwide.

The Challenges of Eradicating Pediatric Helicobacter pylori Infection in the Era of Probiotics

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), the most common infection of childhood, results in life-threatening complications during adulthood if left untreated. Most of these complications are related to H. pylori-induced chronic inflammation. The dysbiosis caused by H. pylori is not limited to the gastric microenvironment, but it affects the entire gastrointestinal tract. Eradication of H. pylori has recently become a real challenge for clinicians due to both the persistent increase in antibiotic resistance worldwide and the wide spectrum of side effects associated with the eradication regimens resulting; therefore, there is an urgent need for more effective and less noxious treatment options. Thus, probiotics might be a promising choice in both adults and children with H. pylori infection since their role in improving the eradication rate of this infection has been proved in multiple studies. The positive effects of probiotics might be explained by their abilities to produce antimicrobial compounds and antioxidants, alter local gastric pH, and subsequently decrease H. pylori colonization and adherence to gastric epithelial cells. Nevertheless, if used alone probiotics do not considerably increase the eradication rate.