Investigation of electrical and viscoelastic parameters of erythrocytes in patients with autoimmune gastritis

Patients with autoimmune gastritis (AIG) often have anemia of various origins. Hematological disorders usually portend severe atrophy, and in many cases, are the only indicators of the disease. Aim of the study was to investigate the electrical and viscoelastic parameters of erythrocytes in patients with AIG for their possible use in diagnostics. Material and methods. 73 patients with AIG (mean age 55.3 ± 12.54 years) and 38 people of the control group were examined. Electrical and viscoelastic parameters of erythrocytes were studied by dielectrophoresis. Results. Statistically significant decrease in the average cell diameter, the proportion of discocyties cells and an increase in the proportion of spherocytes, deformed forms were found in the group of patients with AIG in combination with Helicobaсter рylori (H. pylori, H.p.) infection compared with healthy individuals. Patients with AIG had significantly lower levels of amplitude of deformation, membrane capacity, dipole moment, speed of cell movement to the electrodes, polarizability at high frequencies of the electric field (106, 0.5×106 Hz), relative polarizability, and, conversely, higher values of membrane conductivity, aggregation, destruction indexes, summarized viscosity, rigidity, than those in the comparison group. Between groups of patients with and without H. pylori infection, differences were found in indicators reflecting the surface charge of erythrocytes – the speed of movement to the electrodes (p = 0.019), the dipole moment (p < 0.001) and the state of the membranes – its capacity (p = 0.004). The diagnostic model, which includes three parameters of erythrocytes – the dipole moment, the speed of movement to the electrodes, the capacity of the cell membrane, provided high diagnostic accuracy of distinguishing AIG H.p. (+) and H.p. (–) – area under ROC curve AUC 0.925, sensitivity 92.4 %, specificity 89.7 %. Conclusions: Electrical and viscoelastic parameters of erythrocytes are promising in the diagnosis of AIG, including on the background of H. pylori infection

Pepsinogen testing for evaluation of the success of Helicobacter pylori eradication at 4 weeks after completion of therapy

Funding Information: This study was supported in part from the European Fund for Regional Development project No. 2010/0302/2DP/2.1.1.1.0/10/APIA/VIAA/158 entitled “Development of a Genetic/Serological Biomarker Diagnostic Method for Early Identification of Autoimmune Gastrointestinal Lesions With Increased Malignancy Risk in Patients With Autoimmune Disease.” Publisher Copyright: © 2014 Lithuanian University of Health Sciences. Production and hosting by Elsevier Urban & Partner Sp. z o.o. Copyright: Copyright 2017 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.Background and objective: Pepsinogen levels in plasma are increased by inflammation in the gastric mucosa, including inflammation resulting from Helicobacter pylori infection. A decrease in pepsinogen II level has been suggested as a reliable marker to confirm the successful eradication of infection. The aim of our study was to evaluate the potential role of pepsinogens I and II, gastrin-17 and H. pylori antibodies in confirming successful eradication. Material and methods: Altogether 42 patients (25 women, 17 men), mean age 45 years (range 23-74), were enrolled. Pepsinogens I and II, gastrin-17 and H. pylori IgG antibodies were measured in plasma samples using an ELISA test (Biohit, Oyj., Finland) before the eradication and 4 weeks after completing the treatment. The success of eradication was determined by a urea breath test. Results: Eradication was successful in 31 patients (74%) and unsuccessful in 11 patients (26%). Pepsinogen II decreased significantly in both the successful (P = 0.029) and unsuccessful (P = 0.042) eradication groups. Pepsinogen I decreased significantly in the successful (P = 0.025) but not the unsuccessful (P = 0.29) eradication group. The pepsinogen I/II ratio increased in the successful eradication group (P = 0.0018) but not in the group in which treatment failed (P = 0.12). There were no differences in gastrin-17 or H. pylori antibody values. Conclusions: A decrease in pepsinogen II levels cannot be used as a reliable marker for the successful eradication of H. pylori 4 weeks after the completion of treatment. The increase in pepsinogen I/II ratio reflects differences in pepsinogen production following the eradication irrespective of improvement in atrophy.publishersversionPeer reviewe