Abstract
Introduction: Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), a Gram-negative, spiral, microaerophilic bacterium, has been associated with a variety of intestinal and extraintestinal disorders, including atherosclerosis. The results, however, originating from related studies are controversial. Objective& Methods: The objectives of the study were to determine the frequency of H. pylori infection among IHD patients and otherwise healthy individuals and examine the effect of the infection on lipids, coagulation, inflammatory indices and determinants of homocysteine levels. IgG and IgA antibody titres against H. pylori were calculated in 248 individuals (134 IHD patients and 114 subjects, all meeting inclusion criteria) by means of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. In order to eliminate confounding factors, subjects exhibiting systemic inflammatory disorders, malignancies, renal insufficiency, cholestasis, thyroid diseases, depression or were under medication that could alter the levels of the tested ...
Introduction: Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), a Gram-negative, spiral, microaerophilic bacterium, has been associated with a variety of intestinal and extraintestinal disorders, including atherosclerosis. The results, however, originating from related studies are controversial. Objective& Methods: The objectives of the study were to determine the frequency of H. pylori infection among IHD patients and otherwise healthy individuals and examine the effect of the infection on lipids, coagulation, inflammatory indices and determinants of homocysteine levels. IgG and IgA antibody titres against H. pylori were calculated in 248 individuals (134 IHD patients and 114 subjects, all meeting inclusion criteria) by means of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. In order to eliminate confounding factors, subjects exhibiting systemic inflammatory disorders, malignancies, renal insufficiency, cholestasis, thyroid diseases, depression or were under medication that could alter the levels of the tested parameters, were excluded from the study. Based on serology, the study participants were classified into H. pylori-seropositive and seronegative sex, age, body mass index, diabetes mellitus and smoking-matched subgroups. Lipids -total cholesterol, low and high density lipoproteins (LDL, HDL) and triglycerides- caogulation parameters - platelet count, mean platelet volume, prothrombin time, active partial prothrombin time, fibrinogen and D-dimers- inflammatory indices - white blood cell count, C reactive protein, serum amyloid A, ceruloplamin, complement factors C3 and C4- as well as BNP and fetuin A were determined in all study participants (expressed as mean ± SEM). Results: Higher levels of LDL were recorded in seropositive (115.6 ± 4.157mg/dL) compared to seronegative individuals (102.2 ± 2.991mg/dL) (P<0.01). Moreover, H. pylori seropositive subjects tended to exhibit lower HDL levels (46.44 ± 1.349mg/dL) as compared to those found in the seronegative qroup (42.72 ± 1.414mg/dL), although this difference reached only a statistical trend (P=0.06). An upregulation of ceruloplasmin became evident in the seropositive (26.82 ± 0.5181mg/dL) compared to the seronegative (25.36 ± 0.4866mg/dL) participants (P=0.041). Moreover, these elevated ceruloplasmin concentrations correlated with anti-H.pylori IgG titer (r=0.326, P=0.0007). Subjects with a positive serology for H. pylori tended to exhibit lower C3 levels (112.4 ± 2.341mg/dL) compared to those with a negative serology (117.7 ± 1.793mg/dL) (P=0.076). As far as fetuin A levels are concerned, a positive qualitative and quantitative (IgG and IgA titers) link with seropositivity was recorded: 0.7702 ± 0.03357g/L in seropositive and 0.5575 ± 0.02563g/L in seronegative individuals without IHD (P=0.0005), along with a P=0.047, r= 0.249 for IgG and a P=0.001, r=0,395 for ΙgA antibodies. Conclusion: While the changes in the levels of lipids are suggestive of an H. pylori-induced dyslipidemic background, complement activation and the upregulation of ceruloplasmin are indicative of an associated inflammatory, oxidative disequilibrium. The upregulation of fetuin A, on the other hand, suggests the induction of a metabolic dysregulation, that of insulin resistance. Conclusively, our results show that H. pylori infection may predispose to atherosclerosis by sustaining a multivariate atherogenic condition.
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