Molecular detection of pathogenic bacteria in the colonic biopsies from patients with Ulcerative Colitis

Background/AimUlcerative Colitis (UC) is an inflammatory bowel disease which is common in many areas of the world including Egypt. A lot of controversy regarding the pathogenesis of UC exist. The current study is an attempt to detect some pathogenic bacteria in UC patients.Materials and methodsEndoscopic colonic biopsies obtained from 40 patients with ulcerative colitis and 20 controls were analyzed by means of real-time PCR technique for the presence of Clostridium difficile, Helicobacter Pylori (H. pylori) and pathogenic Escherichia Coli (E. coli) which are positive for KPC and/or OXA-48.ResultsAll patients and control samples were negative for Clostridium difficile. Three of the 40 patient samples (7.5%) and none of the 20 controls were positive for H. pylori with no significant difference between the two groups. KPC-positive E. coli were detected in 11 of the 40 patients (27.5%) and in none of the controls with a significant difference between the two groups (P=0.01). All patients and control samples were negative for OXA-48 positive E. coli.ConclusionAlthough this study does not support the claim that Clostridium difficile and/or H. pylori have a role in UC, it greatly suggests that pathogenic E. coli may be involved in one way or another in the course of UC.