Presence of different genotypes of Helicobacter pylori in patients with chronic tonsillitis and sleep apnoea syndrome

Helicobacter pylori, a well-known gastric pathogen, has been detected in the oral cavity and oropharynx in tonsillar tissue. In our study, the presence of H. pylori in the tonsillar tissue of patients with chronic tonsillitis and sleep apnoea syndrome (SAS) was investigated. The aim was to detect and genotype H. pylori for a collection of data supporting the possible role of H. pylori in the aetiology of chronic tonsillitis and SAS. Helicobacter pylori was detected by real-time polymerase chain reaction (rt-PCR). 89 patients, 60 with a diagnosis of chronic tonsillitis and 29 with SAS, were tested. In the chronic tonsillitis group, Helicobacter was detected in 48 (80 %) specimens, cagA gene was detected in 12 samples (25 %) and 12 samples were negative. In SAS group, Helicobacter was found in 24 samples (82.76 %), cagA gene was detected in 5 (20.83 %) and 5 samples (17.24 %) were negative. Helicobacter pylori-specific immunoglobulins were tested by ELISA in the serum of 57 patients only with 41 (71.93 %) showing positive. Our results on H. pylori DNA detection and H. pylori seropositivity show 26.32 % discrepancy, slightly in favour of rt-PCR (15.79 % compared to 10.53 %). The H. pylori presence in tonsillar tissue does not depend on the type of oropharyngeal disease (p = 0.756). This study shows that oropharynx constitutes an extragastric reservoir of H. pylori infection which could serve as an aetiopathogenetic factor for chronic tonsillitis and tonsillar hyperplasia by SAS. No conclusion has yet been drawn about the mechanism of the process.     

Characterization and cross-species amplification of 16 microsatellite loci in Spergularia echinosperma (Caryophyllales: Caryophyllaceae)

Sixteen polymorphic microsatellite loci are described for Spergularia echinosperma, an endangered plant endemic to Central Europe. Based on 51 individuals, the number of alleles per locus ranged from 2 to 5, and the observed and expected heterozygosities were both 0.00–0.17. The markers can be valuable tool to conservation genetics of this species across its distributional range.     

Changing world of neutrophils

Neutrophilic granulocytes are no longer regarded as cells involved only in the last phase of the immune response with one single—although vitally important—task: engulfing and killing of microorganisms marked by immunoglobulin or complement fragments. In recent years, it was shown that neutrophils are actively involved in initiation and organization of the adaptive immune response by releasing various cytokines, interacting with all major types of immune cells, regulating their own lifespan, and participating in the anaphylactic reaction and in several classically nonimmune functions such as hemostasis, atherogenesis, and even insulin resistance. The antibacterial effect is no longer restricted to killing and destruction of microorganisms sequestered in the phagosomal space. Bacteriostasis also occurs at certain locations of the extracellular space, by formation of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) that were shown in the last 2 years to have a significant role in the prevention of dissemination of microorganisms. Extracellular vesicles represent a recently discovered form of intercellular communication carried out both by lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids. In this review, we also summarize the role of neutrophil-derived extracellular vesicles in modifying the function of other cell types as well as their direct antibacterial effect that differs significantly from mechanisms applied either by neutrophils or by the NETs.