Use of HP selective medium to detect Helicobacter pylori associated with other enteric bacteria in seawater and marine molluscs

• Published in: Letters in applied microbiology Vol. 45; no. 2; pp. 213 - 218
• Main Authors: Fernández, M, Contreras, M, Suárez, P, Gueneau, P, García-Amado, M.A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Oxford, UK : Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.08.2007; Blackwell Publishing Ltd; Blackwell Science
• Subjects: Animals; Bacteriological Techniques; Biological and medical sciences; Culture Media; DNA, Bacterial - analysis; DNA, Bacterial - isolation & purification; Enterobacteriaceae - genetics; Enterobacteriaceae - isolation & purification; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Helicobacter pylori; Helicobacter pylori - classification; Helicobacter pylori - genetics; Helicobacter pylori - growth & development; Helicobacter pylori - isolation & purification; HP selective medium; Marine; marine environments; Microbiology; Molecular Sequence Data; Mollusca; Ostreidae - microbiology; PCR; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Proteus mirabilis; Proteus mirabilis - genetics; Proteus mirabilis - isolation & purification; RNA, Ribosomal, 16S - genetics; Seawater - microbiology; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Vibrio cholerae; Vibrio cholerae - genetics; Vibrio cholerae - isolation & purification; Selective medium; HP selective medium; Spirillales; Applied microbiology; Vibrio cholerae; marine environments; Spirillaceae; Marine environment; Polymerase chain reaction; Helicobacter pylori; Bacteria; Vibrionaceae; Proteus mirabilis; Invertebrata; Mollusca; PCR; Enterobacteriaceae; Seawater
• ISSN: 0266-8254; 1472-765X
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1472-765X.2007.02174.x

This project investigated the utility of HP selective medium to isolate H. pylori cells from seawater and from marine molluscs. Nested-PCR was performed to reveal the presence of Helicobacter genus. All samples were cultured in HP selective medium and 16 cultures were initially selected as putative Helicobacter. Helicobacter spp. DNA were detected in 9/16 cultures and three of them had 99-100% homology to H. pylori based on 16S RNA gene sequence. Helicobacter pylori isolation was unsuccessful. On the basis of 16S RNA gene sequences the contaminating organisms were shown to be Proteus mirabilis and Vibrio cholerae. These results indicate the coexistence of three predominant bacterial genera in the cultures and that HP selective medium can grow other enteric bacteria besides Helicobacter. Additional assays will improve the HP selective medium formulation for marine samples avoiding P. mirabilis and V. cholerae interferents. This work shows the effectiveness of the selective HP medium for the Helicobacter culture from marine samples.