TY - JOUR T1 - Digest JF - Gut JO - Gut SP - 775 LP - 775 VL - 53 IS - 6 AU - Robin Spiller Y1 - 2004/06/01 UR - http://gut.bmj.com/content/53/6/775.2.abstract N2 - While the association of H pylori infection with gastritis, ulcers and cancer have been recognised for many years it is only now that the molecular mechanisms are starting to be understood. Ashktorab and colleagues [see page 805] assessed the effects of H pylori co-incubation on the mitochondria of various cell lines. Within 3 hours the pro-apoptotic protein Bax is translocated to the mitochondria. The mitochondria are depolarised and fragmented within 4 or 5 hours of incubation. By using cells which lack functional p53 they showed that the effect of H pylori was partially mediated through this pathway and could be blocked by the cytoprotective oncoprotein Bcl-2. This opens the way to further work to identify the individual characteristics of host or bacteria which determine whether the end result of this interaction is … ER -