No abstract

A new cultivation method was successfully applied for the in vitro isolation of a hitherto uncultured spiral Helicobacter species associated with ulceration of the non-glandular stomach and gastritis in pigs and formerly described as 'Candidatus Helicobacter suis'. Three isolates, HS1 T , HS2 and HS3, were subcultured from the stomach mucosa of three pigs after slaughter and were analysed using a polyphasic taxonomic approach. The novel isolates grew on biphasic culture plates or very moist agar bases in microaerobic conditions and exhibited urease, oxidase and catalase activities. Sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, the 23S rRNA gene, the partial hsp60 gene and partial ureAB genes confirmed that the strains present in the gastric mucosa of pigs constituted a separate taxon, corresponding to 'Helicobacter heilmannii' type 1 strains as detected in the gastric mucosa of humans and other primates. For all genes sequenced, the highest sequence similarities were obtained with Helicobacter felis, Helicobacter bizzozeronii and Helicobacter salomonis, Helicobacter species isolated from the gastric mucosa of dogs and cats, which have also been detected in the human gastric mucosa and which are commonly referred to as 'Helicobacter heilmannii' type 2. SDS-PAGE of whole-cell proteins of strains HS1 T , HS2 and HS3 differentiated them from other Helicobacter species of gastric origin. The results of the polyphasic taxonomic analysis confirmed that the novel isolates constitute a novel taxon corresponding to 'Helicobacter heilmannii' type 1 strains from humans and to 'Candidatus H. suis' from pigs. The name Helicobacter suis sp. nov. is proposed for the novel isolates with the type strain HS1 T (5LMG 23995 T 5DSM 19735 T).

RIP with high doses of ceftiofur may be a beneficial adjunctive therapy when treating equine synovial infections which are caused by cephalosporin susceptible microorganisms.

It is nowadays well established that gap junctions are critical gatekeepers of cell proliferation, by controlling the intercellular exchange of essential growth regulators. In recent years, however, it has become clear that the picture is not as simple as originally anticipated, as structural precursors of gap junctions can affect cell cycling by performing actions not related to gap junctional intercellular communication. Indeed, connexin hemichannels also foresee a pathway for cell growth communication, albeit between the intracellular compartment and the extracellular environment, while connexin proteins as such can directly or indirectly influence the production of cell cycle regulators independently of their channel activities. Furthermore, a novel set of connexin-like proteins, the pannexins, have lately joined in as regulators of the cell proliferation process, which they can affect as either single units or as channel entities. In the current paper, these multifaceted aspects of connexin-related signalling in cell cycling are reviewed.

Feces from 531 patients with gastroenteritis and from 100 clinically healthy individuals were tested for Helicobacter pullorum by use of PCR. Samples positive by PCR were qualified for isolation. H. pullorum DNA was demonstrated to be present in feces from 4.3% of patients with gastrointestinal disease but also in feces from 4.0% of clinically healthy persons. One strain was isolated from one patient with gastrointestinal disease.