Caroli syndrome: a clinical case with detailed histopathological analysis

© 2018, Japanese Society of Gastroenterology. Herein we present a clinical case of the Caroli syndrome caused by the compound heterozygous mutation in the PKHD1 gene. Histopathological assessment of liver detected biliary cirrhosis, numerous dilated bile ducts of various sizes, hyperplastic cholangiocytes containing a large amount of acid mucopolysaccharides, decreased ß-tubulin expression and increased proliferation of cholangiocytes. A significant proportion of hepatic tissue was composed of giant cysts lined with a single layer of cholangiocytes, containing pus and bile in its lumen and surrounded by granulation tissue. An accumulation of neutrophils in the lumen of the bile ducts was observed, as well as an infiltration of the ducts and cysts surrounding connective tissue by CD4+ and to a lesser extent CD8+ lymphocytes. This may be caused by the expression of HLA-DR by cholangiocytes. Atrophy and desquamation of the epithelium of collecting tubules with the formation of microcysts were detected in the kidneys without a clinically significant loss of renal function. Morphopathogenetic mechanisms of the Caroli syndrome can be targets for a potential pathogenetic therapy and prevention of its manifestations and complications

Shotgun metagenomic data on the human stool samples to characterize shifts of the gut microbial profile after the Helicobacter pylori eradication therapy

© 2017 The Authors The shotgun sequencing data presented in this report are related to the research article named “Gut microbiome shotgun sequencing in assessment of microbial community changes associated with H. pylori eradication therapy” (Khusnutdinova et al., 2016) [1]. Typically, the H. pylori eradication protocol includes a prolonged two-week use of the broad-spectrum antibiotics. The presented data on the whole-genome sequencing of the total DNA from stool samples of patients before the start of the eradication, immediately after eradication and several weeks after the end of treatment could help to profile the gut microbiota both taxonomically and functionally. The presented data together with those described in Glushchenko et al. (2017) [2] allow researchers to characterize the metagenomic profiles in which the use of antibiotics could result in dramatic changes in the intestinal microbiota composition. We perform 15 gut metagenomes from 5 patients with H. pylori infection, obtained through the shotgun sequencing on the SOLiD 5500 W platform. Raw reads are deposited in the ENA under project ID PRJEB21338

Gut Microbiome Shotgun Sequencing in Assessment of Microbial Community Changes Associated with H. pylori Eradication Therapy

© 2016, Springer Science+Business Media New York.Disturbance of intestinal microbiota content and functions often results in different pathological conditions. Pharmacotherapy including antibiotics use is one of the factors leading to dysbiosis. To evaluate the influence of antibiotics use on intestinal microbiota metagenomic profiles of stool, samples of 74 patients before and after Helicobacter pylori—eradication therapy—were analyzed. Evaluation of taxonomic diversity changes based on Shannon index and Bray-Curtis metrics allows to range patients according to mild, moderate, and severe risk of disturbance of intestinal microbiota pathological conditions

Can pancreas be the source of hepatocytes?

The possibility of hepatocytes differentiation from pancreatic cells is discussed in the review. Both liver and pancreas develop from endoderm so there could be a common stem cell giving rise to both pancreatic and liver cells. Different experimental models are used to study the possibility of hepatocytes development in pancreas such as influence of peroxisomes proliferation stimulators, hyperexpression of keratinocyte growth factor in pancreatic islets, Cu depletion-repletion model, etc.). There is no enough data to confirm which particular pancreatic cell type can be the source of hepatocytes. Literature data allow supposing that hepatocytes can arise in pancreas from three different sources: acinar, endocrine or ductular cells

Antibiotic Susceptibility Assessment of Helicobacter pylori Isolates by Disk-Diffusion Method

© 2018, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature. Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection is tightly associated with gastrointestinal disorders such as chronic gastritis, peptic ulcer, gastric MALToma, and gastric cancer. Decreased antibiotic susceptibility in H. pylori is a worldwide problem. Our objective was to determine in vitro antimicrobial susceptibility of H. pylori isolates obtained from gastric mucosa biopsies of children with H. pylori-associated gastroduodenal diseases using disk-diffusion method. A total 76 biopsy specimens were studied; antibiotic susceptibility was assessed in case of 30 children in whom H. pylori was revealed by bacteriology. The maximum resistance of H. pylori isolates was revealed to clarithromycin with nine resistant isolates (30.0%). The rate of resistance to metronidazole, amoxicillin, furazolidone, tetracycline, and levofloxacin was 23.3, 33.3, 16.7, 25.0, and 16.7%, respectively. Multidrug resistance was detected in 20.0% of H. pylori strains. The high prevalence of resistance to antibiotics used in eradication therapy is becoming a problem which needs eradication therapy regimen use based on regional H. pylori resistance rates

Gastric Microbiota in Patients with Dyspepsia: Metatranscriptomic Analysis

Aim: to assess the composition of the microbiota of the mucous membrane of the body and the antrum of the stomach.Materials and methods. Sixty patients with dyspeptic symptoms were included into the study. Two biopsy samples of the gastric mucosa (from the body of the stomach and the antrum) were obtained from each patient. The presence of H. pylori infection was confirmed by PCR; RNA was isolated and then libraries were prepared for metatranscriptomic analysis of the 16S rRNA gene. Sequencing was performed on MiSeq (Illumina, USA) using MiSeq Reagent Kit v3 (600-cycle) (Illumina, USA).Results. The bacterial diversity decreases with the predominance of Helicobacter pylori species in H. pylori-positive patients. These results were confirmed by the Shannon index, the average value of which was 3.6 in the H. pylori-positive group and 5.4 in the H. pylori-negative group. In H. pylori-negative patients an increase in the representation of Streptococcus, Prevotella and Alloprevotella genera was observed. The level of H. pylori contamination of the gastric mucosa varies in the antrum and body of the stomach, in some cases reaching a 3.5-fold difference. Representation of other bacteria in the body and antrum of the stomach does not differ significantly.Conclusion. The bacterial composition of the stomach is dependent on the presence of H. pylori. H. pylori leads to the decrease of the bacterial diversity with the predominance of H. pylori in gastric microbiome

Data on gut metagenomes of the patients with Helicobacter pylori infection before and after the antibiotic therapy

© 2017Antibiotic therapy can lead to the disruption of gut microbiota community with possible negative outcomes for human health. One of the diseases for which the treatment scheme commonly included antibiotic intake is Helicobacter pylori infection. The changes in taxonomic and functional composition of microbiota in patients can be assessed using “shotgun” metagenomic sequencing. Ten stool samples were collected from 4 patients with Helicobacter pylori infection before and directly after the H. pylori eradication course. Additionally, for two of the subjects, the samples were collected 1 month after the end of the treatment. The samples were subject to “shotgun” (whole-genome) metagenomic sequencing using Illumina HiSeq platform. The reads are deposited in the ENA (project ID: PRJEB18265)

Changes of the inflammatory activity and fibrosis in patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis after autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

Evaluation of treatment results of chronic liver diseases should be made on the basis of morphological analysis of liver biopsies. The aim of our study was to investigate the effect of autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation on histology activity index and grade of fibrosis in alcoholic liver cirrhosis patients. The study was performed on liver biopsies of 11 patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis. Biopsies were taken before the injection of autologous peripheral blood stem cells into celiac trunk, 3 and 12 months after the procedure. Liver biopsy specimens were stained with hematoxylin-eosin and Van Gieson's. Results showed improvement of liver structure and decrease in histology activity index in liver biopsies performed 3 and 12 months after transplantation. Our data suggest that autologous transplantation of hematopoietic stem cell in patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis is effective method that is capable to reduce inflammation activity in the liver, improve its structure and decrease liver fibrogenesis

Evaluation of the Hepatoprotective Effect of L-Ascorbate 1-(2-Hydroxyethyl)-4,6-Dimethyl-1,2-Dihydropyrimidine-2-One Upon Exposure to Carbon Tetrachloride

© 2017, Springer Science+Business Media New York.Hepatoprotective properties of a new pyrimidine derivative — L-ascorbate 1-(2-hydroxyethyl)-4,6-dimethyl-1,2-dihydropyrimidine-2-one, synthesized on the basis Xymedon, were assessed in white rats exposed to CCl4. The compound under study administered prior to exposure to CCl4 reduced the deviation of biochemical parameters from reference values and severity of structural and morphological changes in liver, when compared to the control. Hepatoprotective properties of the studied compound were more pronounced than those of Xymedon

LC-MS Method Development for Simultaneous Determination of Trans-3′-hydroxycotinine and Three Mercapturic Acids in Urine

© 2018, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature. The negative impact of tobacco smoke on the human body is due to a wide range of harmful substances including volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Some VOCs of tobacco smoke metabolize in human organism into mercapturic acids (MAs). The determination of the amount of MAs in readily available biological fluids, for example in urine, allows to assess the level of exposure of these VOCs in a particular person. It is useful to assess the impact of individual VOCs on the body together with the assessment of the intake of nicotine. The intake of nicotine can be determined by the content of its metabolites in the urine, in particular by the content of trans-3′-hydroxycotinine (tH-Cot). A joint assessment of the concentrations of trans-3′-hydroxycotinine and MAs in urine allows obtaining selective information about effects of different VOCs and nicotine on the smoker’s body. We have developed a liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC-MS) method for simultaneous quantifying of tH-Cot and three MAs: N-Acetyl-S-(3-hydroxypropyl)cysteine (HPMA), N-Acetyl-S-(3-hydroxypropyl-1-methyl)-L-cysteine (HMPMA), N-Acetyl-S-(2-cyanoethyl)-L-cysteine (CEMA). We used this method to quantify the levels of MAs and tH-Cot in the urine of a group of 15 smokers just before and 5 days after smoking cessation. For all studied compounds, we have found statistically significant changes in concentration on the fifth day of smoking cessation. The method developed can be used to jointly assess the levels of exposure to nicotine and VOCs in the study of various tobacco products