Peu étudiée et méconnue, initialement décrite au début du XXème siècle, Helicobacter pylori fut redécouverte en 1982 par deux chercheurs australiens, JR Warren et BJ Marshall. Ils soutinrent que la plupart des ulcères gastro-duodénaux étaient causés par cette bactérie, et non par le stress ou la nourriture épicée, comme pensé auparavant. Cette découverte révolutionna le monde de la gastroentérologie et leur valut le prix Nobel de physiologie et de médecine 2005. Environ la moitié de la population mondiale est colonisée par H. pylori au niveau de l'estomac. Dans 10 à 20% des cas, l'infection peut évoluer vers un ulcère gastro-duodénal et dans certains cas vers une transformation maligne. Cette infection se soigne classiquement à l'aide d'une trithérapie associant 2 antibiotiques à un inhibiteur de la pompe à protons pour neutraliser l'acidité gastrique. Notre travail de recherche a consisté à analyser la proportion de patients infectés par H. pylori dans une cohorte de plus de 22.000 patients, issus de divers groupes ethniques, vivant en Belgique. Ces souches de H. pylori, isolées dans notre laboratoire, à partir des biopsies gastriques, ont aussi servi à une étude pour suivre l'évolution de la résistance aux antibiotiques ces 20 dernières années afin de proposer des améliorations de la prise en charge thérapeutique de l'infection à H. pylori en Belgique.

Helicobacter pylori infects and persistently colonizes the stomach, which results in gastritis and in some individuals peptic ulcer disease or gastric cancer. Adherence of H. pylori to the epithelium is an important factor for development of disease. Attachment is mediated by the adhesins BabA and SabA that binds the ABO/Leb blood group antigens and sialylated glycoconjugates respectively.  High-affinity attachment could be anticipated to be of disadvantage for H. pylori because epithelial cells have a fast turnover rate and the dislocated and shed epithelial cells would carry attached bacteria to the acidic gastric juice in the lumen. However, here we describe that H. pylori manage to adapt to this innate clearance mechanism by unique acid regulatory binding properties of its adhesins. We propose that pH regulated binding properties enable bacteria to detachment from host cells for chemotactic guided motility and successful return to the more neutral epithelium for a fresh restart of the infectious cycle. By comparison of BabA from different stomach loci we identified amino acid key position for acid regulated binding activity. Previous studies found lower prevalence of Leb-binding among H. pylori isolates from southern Europe compared to Sweden. Here we tested if the reduced prevalence of Leb-binding could be explained by a novel binding mode; in among Spanish strains, we identified S812 that demonstrates preference for multivalent binding to ABO antigens in glycolipids; we found that 812 BabA had drifted in its preferred binding epitope away from the consensus a1,2fucosylation and towards the blood group A and B derivatives. Such epitope drift might in particular optimize binding to ABO antigens in densely packed lipid rafts. In parallel, we studied the influence of BabA for disease progression by an inventory of gastric biopsies. BabA correlated both with the oncoprotein CagA, the VacAs1 toxin and, in addition, to severe disease progression. We further correlate BabA expression with positive secretor phenotype and stronger adhesion of H. pylori in vitro. For functional adherence studies in vitro, we constructed a recombinant Leb-expressing cell lineage that supports BabA mediated H. pylori attachment.

<p>Species of Campylobacter, Arcobacter and Helicobacter have been associated with various diseases in humans and animals / and chickens have been identified as a reservoir of these microorganisms. Two published techniques and a new technique, developed in this dissertation, were evaluated to test its efficiency in removing PCR inhibitors from chicken samples. All of the techniques were based on agarose/DNA slants and were evaluated using multiplex PCR and an Internal Amplification Control. The new technique was found to be most effective and consequently used further in the study. A novel study was done to evaluate the survival of Campylobacter, Arcobacter and Helicobacter strains in chicken blood at -20, 4, 37 and 42&ordm / C as well as at ambient room temperature (&plusmn / 22&ordm / C). It was found that all strains could survive at all temperatures, albeit at different duration times. Most notably, an A. butzleri strain was able to survive at 4oC for up to 297 days.</p>

Estimating substitution frequencies at sites that influence (Ka) and do not influence (Ks) the amino acid sequence is important for understanding the dynamics of molecular sequence evolution and the selective pressures that have shaped genetic variation. The aim of this work was to gain a deeper understanding of the driving forces of substitution frequency variation in human pathogens. Rickettsia prowazekii, the causative agent of epidemic typhus and Helicobacter pylori, which has been implicated in gastric diseases were used as model systems. A specific focus was on the evolution of orphan genes in Rickettsia. Additionally, adaptive sequence evolution and factors influencing protein evolutionary rates in H. pylori were studied. The comparative sequence analyses of orphan genes using Typhus Group (TG) and Spotted Fever Group (SFG) Rickettsia, indicate that orphan genes in the SFG correspond to pseudogenes in the TG and that pseudogenes in the SFG correspond to extensively degraded gene remnants in the TG. The analysis also showed that ancestral gene sequences could be reconstructed from extant gene remnants of closely related species. The studies of split genes in R. conorii indicate that many of the small fragmented ORFs are probably pseudogenes. Analysis of the H. pylori carbamoyl phosphate synthetase provided an opportunity to understand natural selection acting on a protein undergoing adaptive evolution. Factors such as network properties, protein-protein interactions, gene essentiality and chromosomal position on protein evolutionary rates in H. pylori were studied, of which antigenicity and gene location were identified as the strongest factors. In conclusion, high Ka/Ks ratios in human pathogens may reflect either adaptive sequence evolution or gene deterioration. Distinguishing between the two is an important task in molecular evolution and also of great relevance for medical microbiology and functional genomics research.

Many bacteria live in close association with other organisms such as plants and animals, with important implications for both health and disease. This thesis investigates bacteria that are well adapted to live inside an animal host, and describes the molecular evolutionary processes underlying host-adaptation, based on bacterial genome comparisons. Insect-transmitted bacteria of the genus Bartonella infect the red blood cells of mammals, and we investigate host adaptation and genome evolution in this genus. In Bartonella, many host-interaction systems are encoded in a highly variable chromosomal segment previously shown to be amplified and packaged into bacteriophage particles. Among all genes imported into the Bartonella ancestor, we identify the short gene cluster encoding these phage particles as the most evolutionary conserved, indicating a strong selective advantage and a role in niche adaptation. We also provide an overview of the remarkable evolutionary dynamics of type IV and type V secretion systems, including a detailed analysis of the type IV secretion system trw. Our results highlight the importance of recombination and gene conversion in the evolution of host-adaptation systems, and reveal how these mutational mechanisms result in strikingly different outcomes depending on the selective constraints. In the insect endosymbionts Buchnera and Blochmannia, we show that genes frameshifted at poly(A) tracts can remain functional due to transcriptional slippage. Selection against poly(A) tracts is very inefficient in these genomes compared to other bacteria, and we discuss why this can lead to increased rates of gene loss. Using the human pathogen Helicobacter pylori as a model, we provide a deeper understanding of why highly expressed genes evolve slowly. This thesis emphasizes the power of using complete genome sequences to study evolutionary processes. In particular, we argue that knowledge about the complex evolution of duplicated gene segments is crucial to understand host adaptation in bacteria.

Aquesta Tesi Doctoral té com objectius principals l’estudi d’Helicobacter pylori en mostres aquàtiques de Catalunya, en aigües procedents de sistemes dentals de consultes de dentistes, en saliva i en femtes de pacients amb símptomes gastrointestinals mitjançant el mètode de la PCR. També es va estudiar la supervivència d’Helicobacter pylori en aigua dolça usant un model de laboratori aplicant diferents tècniques d’anàlisi i es va interpretar el canvi de morfologia, la viabilitat i la culturabilitat de la bactèria així com la detecció i quantificació del seu ADN durant un període de temps concret. Per aconseguir aquests objectius, primer es va escollir la llet descremada al 40% v/v com a millor crioprotector i el medi agar Columbia suplementat amb 5% de sang desfibrinada de cavall com a medi de cultiu. Durant el desenvolupament de la tesi es va millorar la tècnica de PCR escollida inicialment basada amb l’estudi de Clayton i col•laboradors (1992) on s’usaven els iniciadors HPU1 i HPU2 en la PCR pel gen ureA, gen estructural de l’enzim ureasa. La tècnica de la hibridació seguida per aquests investigadors es va substituir per una segona PCR ja que aquesta permetria obtenir resultats més ràpidament. En aquesta PCR semiimbricada es va introduir un tercer iniciador intern, HPUI1, i mantenint HPU2 com a extern. Pel gen 16S rRNA, gen usat per a la detecció del gènere Helicobacter, es van usar els iniciadors 1F i 1R per a la primera PCR i els 1F i 2R per a la PCR semiimbricada. El mètode d’extracció escollit en aquest treball basat en partícules de sílice i tiocianat de guanidina descrit per Boom i col., (1990) i l’optimització de les barreges de reacció de les PCR semiimbricades pel gen ureA i 16S rRNA van permetre detectar 50 UPF/mL i 2-20UFC/mL, respectivament. Es va determinar la presència de H.pylori en mostres fecals humanes aplicant dos mètodes: mètode antigènic HpSA i l’amplificació del gen ureA. Amb el mètode molecular es va detectar la presència de ADN de H. pylori en 12 mostres i va mostrar un 75% de coincidència amb els resultats obtinguts amb el mètode antigènic HpSA. També es va determinar la presència de H. pylori a aigües amb diferent de nivell de contaminació fecal. Es va amplificar ADN d’aquesta espècie en un 30% de les mostres d’aigua residual, un 8,34% de les mostres d’aigua de riu de Catalunya i no es va detectar en aigua de font. L’estudi de supervivència de H. pylori a l’aigua en la foscor i a 7ºC es va demostrar que el recompte de bacteris i el número de genomes es manté constant durant tot el període d’estudi, 21 dies. La detecció per PCR també va ser positiva i constant durant aquest període. No obstant això, les cèl•lules només es van mantenir cultivables fins al sisè dia d’emmagatzematge. També es va observar una conversió morfològica de les cèl•lules bacterianes passant de la forma espiral a cocal amb el pas del temps. L’estudi de la morfologia cel•lular en un tall vertical d’una colònia d’H. pylori de 4 dies va mostrar la coexistència de cèl•lules amb morfologia bacil•lar i coccal. L’anàlisi de la saliva de 31 persones sanes va evidenciar la presència d’aquest bacteri en la boca de 6% de la població analitzada. La anàlisi feta amb la PCR semiimbricada per al gen 16S rRNA va identificar la presència d’aquest gen en 19 persones però la seqüenciació dels amplicons del gen ureA només va confirmar la presència de H. pylori en tres mostres. L’anàlisi de 31 mostres d’aigua procedents de les corresponents cadires no va mostra la presència del patogen. / This thesis has as main objectives the study of Helicobacter pylori in water samples from Catalonia, saliva and human feces using the PCR method. Also studied survival, morpholgy, viability and culturability of Helicobacter pylori in water. We first chose skim milk at 40% v / v as cryoprotectant and Columbia agar supplemented with 5% horse blood desfibrinada as a medium. We used a seminested PCR for ureA gene with HPU1 and HPU2 primers for the first PCR and HPUI1 and HPU2 for the second PCR. By gene 16S rRNA, we used the 1F and 1R primers for the first PCR and 1F and 2R for the second PCR. Using a silica and guanidine extraction method and optimization of the seminested PCR reaction mixtures for urea and 16S rRNA genes were detected 50 UPF / mL and 2-20UFC/mL respectively. H.pylori was detected in 12 human fecal samples. DNA of H.pylori was amplified in 30% of samples of wastewater, a 8.34% of the samples of river water in Catalonia and was not detected in spring water. The bacterial count and the number of H.pylori genomes remains constant throughout the study period, 21 days water in the dark at 7 ° C. The detection by PCR was also positive and constant during this period. The cells remained culturable only until the sixth day of storage. We observed morphological conversion of bacterial cells through the spiral to cocal over time. The study of cell morphology in a vertical section of a colony of H.pylori showed the coexistence of cells with bacillary and coccal morphology. The analysis of saliva from 31 healthy individuals showed the presence of this bacterium in the mouth of 6% of the analyzed population but we urea only confirmed the presence of H.pylori in three samples by sequencing.

Chapter 1. Deciphering the toxicity of Helicobacter pylori clinical isolates from gastric diseases patients using MALDI-TOF/MS and multivariate analysis. Helicobacter pylori (H. pyloyi) infection is associated with gastric diseases such as gastric polyp, chronic gastritis, gastric ulcer, gastric cancer, etc. In fact, most of the people infected not have the symptoms of gastric diseases due to the high degree of variability of gene with H. pyloyi and the specific immune responses of the hosts. In order to investigate the relationship between H.pylori and gastric diseases, the clinical strains of H. pylori isolated from patients from nine gastric diseases were extracted from the optimized extraction and analysis by MALDI-TOF/MS, then the high reproducible spectra were combined with multivariate statistical analysis including Principal Component Analysis (PCA), Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA), Discriminant Analysis (DA) . In the result of PCA, there is no specific potential marker to discriminate the clinical strains to nine gastric diseases. In the result of HCA, the strains from different gastric diseases were clustered together means they have the similarity of the protein and metabolite. In the result of DA, the strains from gastric and non-gastric cancer were discriminanted by the discriminant function composed of thirty-eight discriminant variables in the spectra. This discriminant function would be confirmed by other clinical strains isolated from gastric diseases patients in the future and then would help to predict the the similarity of the protein and metabolite of the strains isolated from the gastric diseases patients whether gastric cancer or not. Chapter 2. Biomarker discovery in the stools of gastric cancer patients using MALDI-TOF/MS. According to the statistics of Republic 100 years from the Department of Health, cancer was the first of the ten lesding to death. With the modern change of eatiog habbits, gastrointestinal cancer has increased steadily. Gastrointestinal cancer accompanied occult gastrointestinal bleeding, and it is commonly detected by the fecal occult blood test (FOB). FOB including Guaiac-based fecal occult-blood test and immunochemical tests. Guaiac-based fecal occult-blood tests make use of the pseudoperoxidase activity of heme, and the reagent turns blue after oxidation by oxidants or peroxidases in the presence of an oxygen donor such as hydrogen peroxide, so it would have the potential of false-positive result. Immunochemical tests, which use antibodies detect against human hemoglobin with great sensitivity, but the tests are limited by loss of hemoglobin antigenicity at room temperature and require processing in a laboratory. In order to decrease the false-positive of detecting heme and decreasing the cost of the detection against hemoglobin in stools, in the study, we ues the distill water to extract the heme (m/z 616) and hemoglobin in stools and analysis with the reflectron and linear mode of MALDI-TOF/MS. In this study, at first, we used the stimulated stomach acid decomposing the hemoglobin to release the heme, to stimulate the gastrointestinal bleeding. Second, we used the distill water to extract the hemoglobin in stools, and detected by the linear mode of MALDI-TOF/MS, and the detection limit of MALDI-TOF/MS against hemoglobin in stool was better than the immunochemical tests. Third, the same strategy was applied to fifty-nine patients (including nineteen esophageal cancer patients, twenty gastric cancer patients and colorectal cancer patients) stools to detect heme and hemoglobin by MALDI-TOF/MS and the results were compared with the fecal occult blood test. In the detection of heme, MALDI-TOF/MS had not detect heme, but the Guaiac-based fecal occult-blood test had detected, it would be that the stools had the oxidants (not heme) to react the reagent. In addition, MALDI-TOF/MS had detected heme, but the Guaiac-based fecal occult-blood test had no results, those cases would be catched up in the future. In the detection of hemoglobin, using immunochemical tests to be the reference index, MALDI-TOF/MS had the false-negative result might come from the complicated matrix effect of stools, so that the hemoglobin could not form the good crystalline with matrix CHCA. The false-positive results of MALDI-TOF/MS might come from the criteria of hemoglobin signal.

El Helicobater pylori, principal agente causal de la gastritis, condiciona el estrés oxidativo debido a la producción de radicales libres. La Satureja brevicalyx, es usada para tratar problemas gastrointestinales, como la gastritis. El objetivo del presente trabajo fue caracterizar los componentes químicos, la actividad anti-Helicobacter pylori y antioxidante del aceite esencial de Satureja brevicalyx. El aceite esencial reportó un rendimiento (1.80%v/p), rotación óptica (-2 a +4º), densidad (0.9047 g/mL) e índice de refracción (1.475). Mediante CG-SM y CG-FID se elucidó 35 compuestos al 97.1%: monoterpenos oxigenados (74.8%), como componentes mayoritarios la pulegona (27.2%), linalol (20.3%), mentona (11.1%), isomentona (8.3%), cis-isopulegona (2.7%), trans-isopulegona (0.9%), carvacrol (0.6%), timol (0.6%) y α-terpineol (0.5%); hidrocarburos sesquiterpénicos (16%), destacando biciclogermacreno (8.2%), β-cariofileno (6.5%) y bicicloelemeno (0.5%); hidrocarburos monoterpénicos (4.1%), con el p-cimeno (2.0%), limoneno (0.7%) y γ-terpineno (0.6%); y sesquiterpenos oxigenados (1.5%), con el espatulenol (0.8%). Por el método de Artemia salina mostró una bioactividad significativa, con una CL50 de 13.35 μg/mL, y por el método de Dosis Fija, en ratones albinos, presenta una DL50 de 655.26 mg/kg, siendo ligeramente tóxica. Por el método de Difusión de Discos, tiene un efecto antibacteriano frente al H. pylori, con un halo de inhibición de 33.33 % en comparación con la amoxicilina a una concentración de 10 μg/mL; por el método de Difusión en Microplacas, la concentración mínima inhibitoria es de 1.00 μg/mL, y la concentración mínima bactericida de 2.00 μg/mL. Se determinó en 3 modelos la actividad antioxidante a concentraciones de 10, 50 y 100 μg/mL: 1) El aceite inhibió al radical DPPH en 67.76, 75.33 y 86.84%, frente al trolox que inhibió en 80.59, 87.17 y 93.09%; 2) secuestró al radical hidroxilo en 28.95, 51.57 y 76.84%; y 3) inhibió de la peroxidación lipídica en 16.4x10-8, 9.8x10-8 y 8.5x10-8 moles x cm, comparado con el trolox que lo hizo en 14.9x10-8, 8.0x10-8 y 7.5 x10-8 moles x cm, frente a 53.9x10-8 moles x cm para el control negativo. Las estructuras químicas del aceite esencial de la S. brevicalyx justifican su actividad anti-Helicobacter pylori y antioxidante. Palabras Clave: Satureja brevicalyx, gastritis, radicales libres, anti-Helicobacter pylori, antioxidante / The Helicobacter pylori is the main causal agent of gastritis, it conditions the oxidative stress due to the fact that it produces free radicals. The Satureja brevicalyx is used to treat gastrointestinal problems as gastritis. The objective of this work was to characterize the chemical components, the anti-Helicobacter pylori activity and the antioxidant of the main oil of Satureja brevicalyx. Te main oil reported a performance (1.80%v/p), optical rotation (- 2 to + 4º), density (0,9047 g/mL) and index of refraction (1.475). By means of CG-SM and CG-FID elucidated 35 compounds at 97,1%: oxygenated monoterpens (74,8%) as majority compound the pulegone (27,2%), linalool (20,3%), menthone (11,1%), isomenthone (8,3%), cis-isopulegone (2,7%), trans-isopulegone (0,9%), carvacrol (0,6%), thymol (0,6%) and α-terpineol (0,5%); sesquiterpenes hydrocarbons (16%), emphasizing biciclogermacrone (8,2%), β-caryophyllene (6,5%) and bicicloelemene (0,5%); monoterpenic hydrocarbons (4,1%), with the p-cymene (2,0%), limonene (0,7%) and γ-terpineno (0,6%); and sesquiterpenes (1,5%), with espatulenol (0,8%). By the method of Artemia salina it showed a significant bioactivity, with a CL50 of 13,35 μg/mL, and by the method of Fixed Dose, in albinae mice shows a DL50 of 655,26 mg/kg being slightly toxic. By the method of the Diffusion of Discs, it has an antibacterial effect of the H. pylori, with an halo of inhibition of 33,33% in comparation with the amoxiciline in a concentration of 10 μg/mL; by the method of Diffusion in Microplacas, the minimum inhibitory concentration is of 1,00 μg/mL, and the minimum bactericide concentration is of 2,00 μg/mL. The antioxidant activity to concentrations was determined in three models the concentrations must be of 10, 50 and 100 μg/mL: 1) The oil inhibited the radical DPPH in 67.76, 75,33 and 86,84%, in relation with trolox which inhibited in 80.59, 87,17 and 93,09%; 2) kidnapped the hidroxile radical in 28.95, 51,57 and 76,84%; and 3) inhibited the lipidic peroxidation in 16.4x10-8, 9.8x10-8 and 8.5x10-8 moles x cm, in relation with trolox which inhibited in 14.9x10-8, 8.0x10-8 and 7.5 x10-8 moles x cm, in relation to a 53.9x10-8 moles x cm for the negative control. The chemical structures of the main oil of the S. brevicalyx justify its activity as an anti-Helicobacter pylori and as an antioxidant. Key Words: Satureja brevicalyx, gastritis, free radicals, anti-Helicobacter pylori, antioxidant

<p>The development of improved sequencing technologies hasenabled the field of genomics to evolve. Handling andsequencing of large numbers of samples require an increasedlevel of automation in order to obtain high throughput andconsistent quality. Improved performance has lead to thesequencing of numerous microbial genomes and a few genomes fromhigher eukaryotes and the benefits of comparing sequences bothwithin and between species are now becoming apparent. Thisthesis describes both the development of automated purificationmethods for DNA, mainly sequencing products, and a comparativesequencing project.</p><p>The initially developed purification technique is dedicatedto single stranded DNA containing vector specific sequences,exemplified by sequencing products. Specific capture probescoupled to paramagnetic beads together with stabilizing modularprobes hybridize to the single stranded target. After washing,the purified DNA can be released using water. When sequencingproducts are purified they can be directly loaded onto acapillary sequencer after elution. Since this approach isspecific it can be applied to multiplex sequencing products.Different probe sets are used for each sequencing product andthe purifications are performed iteratively.</p><p>The second purification approach, which can be applied to anumber of different targets, involves biotinylated PCR productsor sequencing products that are captured using streptavidinbeads. This has been described previously, buthere theinteraction between streptavidin and biotin can be disruptedwithout denaturing the streptavidin, enabling the re-use of thebeads. The relatively mild elution conditions also enable therelease of sensitive biotinylated molecules.</p><p>Another project described in this thesis is the comparativesequencing of the 40 kb<i>cag</i>pathogenicity island (PAI) in four<i>Helicobacter pylori</i>strains. The results included thediscovery of a novel gene, present in approximately half of theSwedish strains tested. In addition, one of the strainscontained a major rearrangement dividing the<i>cag</i>PAI into two parts. Further, information about thevariability of different genes could be obtained.</p><p><b>Keywords:</b>DNA sequencing, DNA purification, automation,solid-phase, streptavidin, biotin, modular probes,<i>Helicobacter pylori</i>,<i>cag</i>PAI.</p>

In der Humanmedizin wird zur Beurteilung der Magenschleimhautproben das aktualisierte Sydney-System nach STOLTE (1997) angewendet. Das Ziel war es herauszufinden, ob das histologische Grading System auch in der Veterinärmedizin, für die Beurteilung von Pferdemagenschleimhautpräparaten, genutzt werden kann und ob daraus neue Erkenntnisse erwachsen. Von 60 Pferden wurden direkt post mortem Schleimhautproben aus der Pars glandularis (Drüsenschleimhaut), im Bereich der großen Kurvatur und dem Pylorus, entnommen. Die Patienten wurden in 4 Gruppen, 10 operierte (Kolik)pferde, 36 Pferde mit Kolik und infauster Prognose, 6 Pferde mit hochgradigen Magenulzera und 8 Pferde, die nicht auf Grund einer Kolik euthanasiert wurden, eingeteilt. Die makroskopische Beurteilung der 60 Pferdemägen erfolgte nach MURRAY et al. (1989) und MACALLISTER et al. (1995). Die histopathologische Beurteilung erfolgt in der Humanmedizin anhand der Helicobacter-like-Organismen Dichte, dem Grad der chronischen Entzündung, der Aktivität der Gastritis, der Atrophie und der intestinalen Metaplasie. Nach diesen Beurteilungsvariablen wurden die 120 Proben aus den 60 Pferdemägen beurteilt. Die ätiologischen Diagnosen sind in der Humanmedizin das Ergebnis jahrzehntelanger Forschung. Beim Pferd liegen dagegen zur Ätiologie der Gastritis noch keine gesicherten Erkenntnisse vor. Beim Pferd gibt es bestimmte Gastritisformen, die denen des Menschen ähnlich sind. Doch können die morphologischen Befunde in der Veterinärmedizin, nach den jetzigen Erkenntnissen, keinen Ätiologien zugeordnet werden. Die ätiologischen Diagnosen in dieser veterinärmedizinischen Studie beruhen auf der Diagnostik am Menschen und wurden noch nicht auf ihre Richtigkeit beim Pferd überprüft. Von den 60 untersuchten Pferdemägen wiesen 31 makroskopisch Läsionen in der Magenschleimhaut auf. 20 Pferde mit Veränderungen hatten diese in der Pars glandularis. Bei 44 der Pferde bestätigt der histologische Befund, nach dem aktualisierten Sydney- System, das makroskopische Grading. 13 der Pferde hatten nach dem aktualisierten Sydney-System histologisch einen pathologischen Befund, obwohl makroskopisch die Schleimhaut keine Auffälligkeiten aufwies. Bei nur 3 von den 60 Pferden konnte der histologische den makroskopischen Befund nicht bestätigen. Ätiologisch wurde, nach humanmedizinischen Beurteilungskriterien, bei 18 Pferden im Bereich der großen Kurvatur der Pars glandularis und, oder im Bereich des Pylorus eine C-Gastritis (chemische Gastritis), bei 11 Pferden eine like B-Gastritis (bakterielle Gastritis ohne den Nachweis von Helicobacter-like-Organismen), 3 Pferden eine B-Gastritis (bakterielle Gastritis mit dem Nachweis von Helicobacter-like-Organismen) und bei 9 Pferden eine Sonderform der Gastritis diagnostiziert. 6 Pferde bekamen die Diagnose: zur Zeit nicht klassifizierbar und 7 Pferde die deskriptive Diagnose erosive oder ulzerative Gastritis gestellt. 24 Pferde hatten keinen pathologischen Befund in einem der oben genannten Bereiche der Schleimhaut. Die histopathologischen Befunde der Pferde mit einer like-B-Gastritis oder einer B-Gastritis entsprachen nach humanmedizinischen Gesichtspunkten dem Bild einer Helicobacter-pylori-Gastritis beim Menschen. Bandartige Anordnung der Lymphozyten in der Lamina propria mucosae und neutrophile Granulozyten in Verbindung mit einer Atrophie des Drüsenkörpers, intestinaler Metaplasie und Erosionen. Bei drei Pferden konnte in der Warthin–Starry-Färbung und in der IHC-Reaktion Helicobacter-like-Organismen nachgewiesen werden. Die Pylorusschleimhaut war doppelt so häufig, im Vergleich zur Drüsenschleimhaut der großen Kurvatur, von einer like-B-Gastritis oder B-Gastritis betroffen. Die histologische Auswertung von Magenschleimhautbioptaten, in dieser Studie nach dem aktualisierten Sydney-System aus der Humanmedizin, komplettiert die makroskopische (endoskopische) Diagnostik. Nach den Ergebnissen der vorliegenden Studie gehört in der Pferdemedizin zu jeder Gastroskopie die Bioptatentnahme. Das aktualisierte Sydney-System kann in Zukunft in der Veterinärmedizin als Arbeitsgrundlage für die weitere wissenschaftliche Forschung genutzt werden. / Stolte’s updated Sydney system is used in the field of human medicine for grading the gastric mucosa (STOLTE 1997). The goal of this study was to determine whether this system could also be applied for histological parameter grading in veterinary medicine, in order to gain new insights into medications for treating equine gastric mucosa. Post mortem biopsies of mucosa were taken from 60 equines along the greater curve and pylorus of the pars glandularis. The test animals were divided into four groups: 10 post-colic surgery equines, 36 with colic and an infaust prognosis, six with chronic EGUS (equine gastric ulcer syndrome), and eight equines not euthanized for reasons other than colic. Macroscopic grading of the 60 equine stomachs was performed in accordance with MURRAY et al. (1989) and MACALLISTER et al. (1995). In human medicine, histological scoring is based on the following five parameters: density of Helicobacter-like organisms, grade of the chronic inflammation, level of gastric activity, atrophy, and intestinal metaplasia. A total of 120 biopsies taken from the 60 equines were graded according to these parameters. Etiologic diagnoses for humans are the outcome of decades of research, but the etiology of equine gastritis lacks an equivalent foundation. Equines exhibit forms of gastritis similar to those in humans, but their morphology cannot be classified into any specific etiology. In this study, the etiological diagnoses were based on human diagnostics, but their validity for equines has yet to be substantiated. Of the 60 equine stomachs examined, 31 showed lesions in the gastric mucosa, while 20 of those with changes had lesions in the pars glandularis. Histological findings of 44 equines confirmed the macroscopic grading according to the updated Sydney system. Thirteen equines exhibited pathological findings based on the updated Sydney system histology, although no abnormalities were discovered in the macroscopic examination. The histological diagnosis did not confirm the macroscopic grading for only three of the 60 subjects. The following etiological findings were reached in terms of human medicine: 18 equines with type C gastritis (chemical gastritis) along the greater curve of the pars glandularis and/or pylorus, 11 equines with type B-like gastritis (bacterial gastritis without evidence of H-like organisms), three equines with type B gastritis (bacterial gastritis with evidence of H-like organisms), and nine with a special form of gastritis. Six of the equines could not be classified, while seven showed erosive gastritis or ulceration. A total of 24 equines exhibited no pathological findings along any of the above-mentioned mucosae. The histopathological findings of the equines with either type B-like gastritis or type B gastritis corresponded with H pylori gastritis seen in humans, as ligamental lymphocytes in the lamina propria mucosae and neutrophilic granulocytes associated with atrophy of the glandular corpus, intestinal metaplasia, and erosion. Warthin-Starry staining and the IHC reaction confirmed H-like organisms in three of the equines. The frequency of type B-like gastritis or type B gastritis was observed to be twice as high in the pylorus mucosa as along the glandular mucosa of the greater curve. This study has demonstrated that histological analysis of gastric mucosa biopsies graded according to the updated Sydney system for human medicine significantly complements veterinary gastroscopy, which should therefore always include a biopsy. The updated Sydney system can thus serve as a platform for future scientific research in the field of veterinary medicine.