Helicobacter

Overview

• Related to Campylobacter species and Arcobacter species
• A bacterial pathogen of the intestines
• Discovered in the stomach of humans in 1987
• H. felis, H. bizzozeronii, H. salomonis and H. bilis found in gastric mucosa and intestines of dogs and cats

Characteristics

• Helical, S-shaped or curved Gram negative rods
• Require enriched media; some grow on Skirrow agar
• Microaerophilic, non-saccharolytic
• Oxidase positive and catalase positive except for H. canis
• Helicobacters which colonise gastric mucosa are urease positive

Clinical infections

• Helicobacter pylori causes gastritis and duodenal and gastric ulcers in humans
• Association with gastric adenocarcinoma in humans
• H. mustelae has been associated with chronic gastritis and gastric ulcers in ferrets
• Significance in gastrointestinal diseases of domestic carnivores not known

• Carried in the stomach of a high proportion of people.
  • 60% in the elderly.
• Implicated in the development of peptic ulcers and gastritis in people.
• Strong epidemiological evidence for the involvement of H. pylori in human gastric neoplasia.
  • No evidence this is the case for animals.
• Several species demonstrated in dogs: H. felis, H. bizzozeronii, H. salomonis and H. bilis.
  • Present in around 80% of clinically healthy pet dogs.
    • Up to 100% in dogs from animal shelters.
• Experimental infection of dogs has failed to show a consistent relationship between infection with Helicobacter and pathology.
  • Inflammation accompanies infection in some but not all infected dogs.