| [ Summary ] |
Since the discovery of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), the roles of inflammatory cytokines in the secretion of gastric acid have been studied. It is very possible that inflammatory cytokines have important roles not only in the inflammation of gastric mucosa but also in the mechanisms for acid secretion. Among these cytokines that increased in the gastric mucosa with the infection of H. pylori, interleukin (IL)-1 is known to have an inhibitory action on the secretion of gastric acid. In this paper, the details of the mechanism for the action of IL-1β were discussed. Recently we demonstrated that IL-8 increases tetragastrin-stimulated acid secretion, and elucidated its mechanism on the action of IL-8. In this paper, the action of IL-8 on acid secretion was discussed in relation to our recent studies. Furthermore the action of TNF-α was also discussed. As described in this paper, a new understanding of the mechanism for the secretion of gastric acid is needed. On the other hand, polymorphisms of cytokine genes are associated with the risk for atrophic gastritis and gastric cancers. However, there were conflicting data between studies, and differences in the rates of polymorphisms in different countries. We need more studies to conform the meanings of the polymorphism of cytokines in the pathogenesis of H. pylori infection. |