Killer of stomach health

幽门螺旋杆菌(简称Hp)是世界上最常见的病原体之一, 是导致胃炎, 溃疡和胃癌发病的元凶. 它可以通过餐具, 牙具, 接吻等相互传染. 因此, 讲究卫生, 不用他人餐具, 牙具, 可以预防幽门螺旋杆菌感染, 从而预防各种胃病. 2005年诺贝尔生理化学奖得主正是幽门螺旋杆菌的发现者-澳大利亚科学家巴里·马歇尔和罗宾·沃伦, 他们的发现使得原本慢性的, 经常无药可救的胃溃疡变成了只需抗生素和一些其他药物短期就可治愈的疾病.


The Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for 2005 was jointly awarded to Australian scientists Barry J. Marshall and J. Robin Warren for their discovery of "the bacterium Helicobacter pylori and its role in gastritis and peptic ulcer disease" .

Peptic ulcer - an infectious disease

With tenacity and open minds, Marshall and Warren challenged prevailing dogmas that stomach disease was not infectious. Using commonly available techniques, they made the irrefutable case that the bacterium Helicobacter pylori was causing the disease. By culturing the bacteria they made them amenable to scientific study.

In 1982, when this bacterium was first discovered by Marshall and Warren, stress and lifestyle were considered the major causes of peptic ulcer disease. It is now firmly established that Helicobacter pylori causes more than 90% of duodenal ulcers and up to 80% of gastric ulcers. The link between Helicobacter pylori infection and subsequent gastritis and peptic ulcer disease has been established through studies of human volunteers, antibiotic treatment studies and epidemiological studies.



Helicobacter pylori causes life-long infection

Helicobacter pylori is a spiral-shaped bacterium that colonizes the stomach in about 50% of all humans. Infection is typically contracted in early childhood, frequently by transmission from mother to child, and the bacteria may remain in the stomach for the rest of the person's life. This chronic infection is located in the lower part of the stomach. The infection is usually asymptomatic but can cause peptic ulcer.

The current view is that the chronic inflammation in the distal part of the stomach caused by Helicobacter pylori infection results in an increased acid production from the non-infected upper corpus region of the stomach. This will predispose for ulcer development in the more vulnerable duodenum. Disease or not - interaction between the bacterium and the human host
Helicobacter pylori is present only in humans and has adapted to the stomach environment. Only a minority of infected individuals develop stomach disease.

Since Marshall's and Warren's discovery, research has been intense. Details underlying the exact pathogenetic mechanisms are continually being unraveled. The bacterium itself is extremely variable, and strains differ markedly in many aspects. Even in a single infected individual all bacteria are not identical, and during the course of chronic infection bacteria adapt to the changing conditions in the stomach with time.

Antibiotics cure but can lead to resistance

An indiscriminate use of antibiotics to eradicate Helicobacter pylori from healthy carriers would lead to severe problems with bacterial resistance against these important drugs. Therefore, treatment of Helicobacter pylori should be restricted in patients without documented gastric or duodenal ulcer disease.

Vocabulary
schizophrenia 精神分裂症
helicobacter pylori 幽门螺旋杆菌
peptic ulcer 胃溃疡
tenacity 坚韧
amenable 经得起检验的
duodenal 十二指肠的
asymptomatic 无症状的
predispose 倾向于
inflammation 发炎
mucosa 黏膜
indiscriminate 不加选择的

Science & technology round-up

New gene linked with schizophrenia
发现精神分裂症新基因
A new gene has been identified as linked with a higher risk of schizophrenia and depression. Schizophrenia and related mood disorders are thought to arise from a combination of genetic and environmental factors, but researchers have had difficulty identifying the specific genes involved. The new discovery may in the future lead to the eventual development of new drugs to treat mental health problems.

Side effects of flu drug Tamiflu under probe
"克流感"副作用待查
United States and European regulators have launched an investigation into the safety of Tamiflu after the deaths of 12 Japanese children who took the anti-flu drug. It was difficult to tell whether the drug, manufactured by the Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche, had played a role in the fatalities. Tamiflu has proven effective against influenza A and B and H5N1 bird flu virus.



China plans to check severe biodiversity loss
控制生物多样化损失
China has mapped out a plan to reverse the severe losses to its biological resources in the next five years. A recent survey has indicated that between 20 and 40 percent of species in China are being threatened, with almost one species becoming extinct every day. Due to environmental degradation, some breeding species of domestic animals and poultry have already become extinct.