Genotyping of environmental Helicobacter pylori strains in Kurdistan water sources

Background and Objective: Epidemiological and environmental studies indicate the relation between H. pylori infection and the level of health, especially water health. In developing countries such as Iran, contaminated water is one of the most important ways of transmission of this bacterium. The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of H. pylori and its virulence genes in Sanandaj and Marivan water sources samples. Method of Evaluation: In this study, 100 samples of water collected from different areas of Sanandaj and Marivan were studied. After filtration of water samples, the genome of potential organisms in the samples was extracted using PowerSoil® DNA Isolation Kit (Qiagen). H. pylori contamination was determined by using PCR and specific primers for 16S rDNA gene. Findings: In this study, two samples were positive for H. pylori. In these two samples, vacA s1/m2 (100%), iceA1 (100%), iceA2 (50%) genes were determined. Conclusion: In this study, genotype of environmental strains of H. pylori were similar to clinical strains. Therefore, these strains have the ability to colonize the human stomach and if not done following of the hygiene notes, the next destination of these strains will be stomach of humans probably.

Keywords:

Helicobacter pylori , Water sources , Genotyping , Virulence genes