What are the characteristics of clarithromycin-resistant Helicobacter pylori?
Clarithromycin is currently one of the antibiotics used for eradication of Helicobacter pylori. However, reports of H. pylori resistance to this antibiotic are increasing worldwide. Clarithromycin resistance has been attributed to the presence of mutations in the 23S rRNA gene, a component of the ribosome that is the protein manufacturing machinery of all living cells. There is little information on the prevalence and characteristics of clarithromycin resistance in H. pylori strains isolated from Malaysian patients. In a research article to be published on July 7,2009 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology, the authors determined the prevalence of resistance and characterized the types of mutations present in their resistant strains. In this study conducted by Norazah et al on strains isolated in Malaysia, a low prevalence of clarithromycin-resistant strains was noted. Transitions of adenine to guanine at positions 2142 and 2143 of the 23S rRNA of H. pylori were the main mutations fo
