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Updated: Sep 3, 2025
Gastric Mucosa Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction Analysis for Detecting Helicobacter pylori and Antibiotic Resistance
Published on: March 7, 2025
Characterization and Genomic Analysis of a New Phage Infecting Helicobacter pylori
Rute Ferreira1,2,3, Cláudia Sousa1,2, Raquel F S Gonçalves1,2
1CEB-Centre of Biological Engineering, University of Minho, 4710-057 Braga, Portugal.
Abstract:
Helicobacter pylori, a significant human gastric pathogen, has been demonstrating increased antibiotic resistance, causing difficulties in infection treatment. It is therefore important to develop alternatives or complementary approaches to antibiotics to tackle H. pylori infections, and (bacterio)phages have proven to be effective antibacterial agents. In this work, prophage isolation was attempted using H. pylori strains and UV radiation. One phage was isolated and further characterized to assess potential phage-inspired therapeutic alternatives to H. pylori infections. HPy1R is a new podovirus prophage with a genome length of 31,162 bp, 37.1% GC, encoding 36 predicted proteins, of which 17 were identified as structural. Phage particles remained stable at 37 °C, from pH 3 to 11, for 24 h in standard assays. Moreover, when submitted to an in vitro gastric digestion model, only a small decrease was observed in the gastric phase, suggesting that it is adapted to the gastric tract environment. Together with its other characteristics, its capability to suppress H. pylori population levels for up to 24 h post-infection at multiplicities of infection of 0.01, 0.1, and 1 suggests that this newly isolated phage is a potential candidate for phage therapy in the absence of strictly lytic phages.
Insights
A new bacteriophage, HPy1R, shows potential for treating Helicobacter pylori infections. This phage is stable in gastric conditions and effectively suppresses bacterial populations, offering a promising alternative to antibiotics.
Area of Science:
- Microbiology
- Bacteriophage research
- Infectious disease therapeutics
Background:
- Helicobacter pylori is a major cause of gastric infections.
- Increasing antibiotic resistance in H. pylori necessitates alternative treatments.
- Bacteriophages are effective antibacterial agents with therapeutic potential.
Purpose of the Study:
- To isolate and characterize bacteriophages for potential H. pylori infection therapy.
- To assess the stability and efficacy of a newly isolated phage in a gastric environment.
Main Methods:
- Isolation of prophages from H. pylori strains using UV radiation.
- Characterization of phage HPy1R, including genome sequencing and stability assays.
- Evaluation of phage efficacy in an in vitro gastric digestion model and its ability to suppress H. pylori populations.
Main Results:
- A novel podovirus prophage, HPy1R, was isolated with a genome of 31,162 bp encoding 36 proteins.
- HPy1R particles demonstrated stability at 37 °C and across a pH range of 3-11 for 24 hours.
- The phage showed resilience in an in vitro gastric model and suppressed H. pylori populations for up to 24 hours.
Conclusions:
- The newly isolated phage HPy1R is a potential candidate for phage therapy against H. pylori infections.
- Its stability in gastric conditions and bacterial suppression capabilities make it a viable alternative, especially in the absence of strictly lytic phages.
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