Helicobacter pylori

The impact of Helicobacter pylori on basic science and the clinical management of patients with the complications of this infection is bewildering. The explosion of new information both in the laboratory and at the bedside has progressed at an unprecedented rate. Our main objective in furthering this progress has been to integrate this new information and organize a series of top quality presentations and discussions between investigators and clinicians on all aspects of H. pylori research and to review the current position and future research directions. To that end, the second meeting Helicobacter pylori: Basic Mechanisms to Clinical Cure was organized in June 1996 in Ottawa, Canada, following the successful format of the first such meeting held in Amelia Island, Florida, in 1993. The meeting again focused on all timely aspects of H. pylori research. Internationally renowned basic and clinical scientists, all experts in their respective fields, explored in depth the spectrum of H. pylori infection and the related complications of gastritis, peptic ulcer, gastric cancer and lymphoma. The presentations covered: the genetic heterogeneity of the organism, including the expression of virulence factors determined by the genetic pathogenicity island; the intricate cascade of chemokines and cytokines leading to mucosal inflammation; the complexities of the mucosal immune response, favoring a slight Th1 over Th2 lymphocyte imbalance; the fundamental issue of the apparent paradox of the induction of both apoptosis and epithelial hyperproliferation; the pathophysiological consequences of gastric mucosal inflammation with respect to the elevation of gastrin and the acid secretory response; the mechanisms leading to peptic ulcer disease, gastric carcinoma and gastric mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma; the established and novel therapeutic approaches to eradication and finally the prospects for successful therapeutic and preventative vaccination. The comprehensive manuscripts in this book of the proceedings of the meeting reflect the most up-to-date information and state of the art approaches to research and management of H. pylori infection and will provide an invaluable reference source.