Gastric-and-Intestinal Mixed Intestinal Metaplasia Is Irreversible Point with Eradication of Helicobacter pylori

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) represents an important factor in the development of atrophic gastritis, intestinal metaplasia (IM), and gastric cancer. Eradication of H. pylori has been reported to prevent gastric cancer only in cases without atrophy or IM. However, histological changes with eradication have yet to be fully clarified. We evaluated 38 H. pylori-positive cases before and after eradication at the gland level;pyloric glands were classified as showing gastric proper (G) and IM gland types, with the latter including gastric-and-intestinal mixed IM (GI-IM) and solely intestinal IM (I-IM), depending on the remaining gastric phenotypes. On eradication, acute and chronic inflammation attenuated rapidly and gradually, respectively, whereas levels of MUC5AC and MUC6 expression were not markedly altered. Gland width, size of nuclei and cytoplasm and their ratio in surface foveolar epithelium, the number of Ki-67-positive cells and the length of the proliferating zone in each gland were significantly decreased in G glands after eradication compared with those in GI-IM and I-IM. The number of mitotic phase cells, positive for phosphorylated histone H3 at serine 28, was increased in both types of IM compared to that in G glands in the H. pylori-infected state, but unexpectedly remained unchanged with eradication. These results suggest that GI-IM, as the beginning of IM, could represent a histological irreversible point with eradication and be considered as a “histological point of no return”.

-449 C>G polymorphism of NFKB1 gene,coding nuclear factor-kappa-B,is associated with the susceptibility to ulcerative colitis

AIM:To clarify the association between a polymorphism-449 C>G(rs72696119) in 5'-UTR of NFKB1 with ulcerative colitis(UC).METHODS:The studied population comprised 639 subjects,including patients with UC(UC cases,n = 174) and subjects without UC(controls,n = 465).We employed polymerase chain reaction-single strand conformation polymorphism to detect the gene polymorphism.RESULTS:The rs72696119 G allele frequencies in controls and UC cases were 33.4% and 38.5%,respectively(P = 0.10).Genotype frequency of the GG homozygote in UC cases was significantly higher than that in controls(P = 0.017),and the GG homozygote was significantly associated with susceptibility to UC [odds ratio(OR),1.88;95%CI,1.13-3.14].In male subjects,the GG homozygote was associated with an increased risk for UC(OR,3.10;95%CI,1.47-6.54;P = 0.0053),whereas this association was not found in female subjects.In addition,the GG homozygote was significantly associated with the risk of non-continuous disease(OR,2.06;95%CI,1.12-3.79;P = 0.029),not having total colitis(OR,2.40;95%CI,1.09-3.80,P = 0.040),disease which developed before 20 years of age(OR,2.80;95%CI,1.07-7.32,P = 0.041),no hospitalization(OR,2.28;95%CI,1.29-4.05;P = 0.0090) and with a maximum of 8 or less on the UCDAI score(OR,2.45;95%CI,1.23-4.93;P = 0.022).CONCLUSION:Our results provide evidence that NFKB1 polymorphism rs72696119 was significantly associated with the development of UC.This polymorphism influences the susceptibility to and pathophysiological features of UC.

Genetic polymorphisms of MAFK, encoding a small Maf protein, are associated with susceptibility to ulcerative colitis in Japan

AIM To investigate whether single nucleotide polymorphisms in maf protein K(MAFK), which encodes the MAFK, lead to increased susceptibility to ulcerative colitis in the Japanese population. METHODS This case control study examined the associations between MAFK single nucleotide polymorphisms(rs4268033 G>A, rs3735656 T>C and rs10226620 C>T) and ulcerative colitis susceptibility in 174 patients with ulcerative colitis(UC) cases, and 748 subjects without no lower abdominal symptoms, diarrhea or hematochezia(controls). In addition, as the second controls, we set 360 subjects, who have an irregular bowel movement without abnormal lower endoscopic findings(IBM controls).RESULTS The genotype frequency of rs4268033 AA and allelic frequency of the rs4268033 A allele were significantly higher in the UC cases than in both controls(P = 0.0005 and < 0.0001, P = 0.015 and 0.0027 vs controls and IBM controls, respectively). Logistic regression analysis after adjustment for age and gender showed that the rs4268033 AA and rs3735656 CC genotypes were significantly associated with susceptibility to UC development(OR = 2.63, 95%CI: 1.61-4.30, P = 0.0001 and OR = 1.81; 95%CI: 1.12-2.94, P = 0.015, respectively). Similar findings were observed by the comparison with IBM controls. In addition, the rs4268033 AA genotype was significantly associated with all phenotypes of UC except early onset. There was no significant association between rs10226620 and ulcerative colitis. CONCLUSION Our results provide the first evidence that MAFK genetic polymorphisms are significantly associated with susceptibility to UC development. In particular, rs4268033 is closely associated with an increased risk for the development of UC.

Discovery of Paleozoic rocks at northern margin of Sambagawa terrane,eastern Kyushu,Japan:Petrogenesis,U-Pb geochronology and its tectonic implication

Ordovician diorite-quartz diorite mylonite(Saganoseki quartz diorite) was discovered in Sambagawa metamorphic terrane at the northern margin of Saganoseki Peninsula,Kyushu Island,Japan.The LA-ICP-MS zircon U-Pb geochronology revealed that the intrusion age of Saganoseki quartz diorite was 473.3±3.6 Ma.These rocks show the volcanic arc affinity based on the trace element composition.On the basis of geochronological and geochemical results,Saganoseki quartz diorite is considered to be a member of the Early Paleozoic igneous rocks of the Kurosegawa tectonic zone.Saganoseki quartz diorite is located just south of the Median Tectonic Line(MTL)and is in close contact with the pelitic and psammitic schist without any brittle shear zone.U-Pb ages of detrital zircon grains from two psammitic schists show the estimated sedimentation age of early Late Cretaceous,indicate that these psammitic schists are the member of Sambagawa metamorphic rocks.Together with these results and the mode of occurrence in the field,we argue that the Early Paleozoic igneous rocks of the Kurosegawa tectonic zone existed as an upper structural unit of the Sambagawa terrane.This relationship is the key to reconstruct the Mesozoic tectonics of Japan as a part of East Asia,and its evolution through time.