Exploring alternative treatments for Helicobacter pylori infection

Helicobacter pylori(H. pylori) is a successful pathogen that can persist in the stomach of an infected person for their entire life. It provokes chronic gastric inflammation that leads to the development of serious gastric diseases such as peptic ulcers, gastric cancer and Mucosa associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma. It is known that these ailments can be avoided if the infection by the bacteria can be prevented or eradicated. Currently, numerous antibiotic-based therapies are available. However, these therapies have several inherent problems, including the appearance of resistance to the antibiotics used and associated adverse effects, the risk of re-infection and the high cost of antibiotic therapy. The delay in developing a vaccine to prevent or eradicate the infection has furthered research into new therapeutic approaches. This review summarises the most relevant recent studies on vaccine development and new treatments using natural resources such as plants, probiotics and nutraceuticals. In addition, novel alternatives based on microorganisms, peptides, polysaccharides, and intragastric violet light irradiation are presented. Alternative therapies have not been effective in eradicating the bacteria but have been shown to maintain low bacterial levels. Nevertheless, some of them are useful in preventing the adverse effects of antibiotics, modulating the immune response, gastroprotection, and the general promotion of health. Therefore, those agents can be used as adjuvants of allopathic anti-H. pylori eradication therapy.

Chronic exposure to low doses of ozone produces a state of oxidative stress and blood-brain barrier damage in the hippocampus of rat

Chronic exposure to low doses of ozone similar to a day of high pollution in Mexico City causes a state of oxidative stress. This produces a progressive neurodegeneration in hippocampus of rats exposed to the gas. The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of chronic exposure on the changes in the blood-brain barrier in rats exposed to low doses of ozone. Method: each group received one of the following treatments, control group received air without ozone, and groups 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 received ozone doses of 0.25 ppm for 4 h daily during 7, 15, 30, 60 and 90 days respectively. Each group was processed to inmunohistochemical technique against of the following antibody: blood-brain barrier, guanylyl cyclase, Iba-1, GFAP, NFκ-B, TNF-α. The results show that there is a correlation between the time exposure of ozone and the progressive damage, on the blood-brain barrier rupture, finally causing edema of endothelial cell, increase in guanylyl cyclase type 1, thickening of the processes and astrocytes foot, and an increase in the expression of factors NFκ-B and TNF-α at 30 and 60 days of exposure to this gas. All the above indicates that the chronic state of oxidative stress causes a neurodegeneration process, accompanied by disruption of the blood-brain barrier likely to occur in the Alzheimer’s disease.