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The Phylogeny and Biological Function of Gastric Juice—Microbiological Consequences of Removing Gastric Acid

Gastric juice is a unique combination of hydrochloric acid (HCl), lipase, and pepsin. Acidic gastric juice is found in all vertebrates, and its main function is to inactivate microorganisms. The phylogenetic preservation of this energy-consuming and, at times, hazardous function (acid-related diseas...

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Autores principales: Martinsen, Tom C., Fossmark, Reidar, Waldum, Helge L.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: MDPI 2019
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6928904/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31795477
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijms20236031
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author Martinsen, Tom C.
Fossmark, Reidar
Waldum, Helge L.
author_facet Martinsen, Tom C.
Fossmark, Reidar
Waldum, Helge L.
author_sort Martinsen, Tom C.
collection PubMed
description Gastric juice is a unique combination of hydrochloric acid (HCl), lipase, and pepsin. Acidic gastric juice is found in all vertebrates, and its main function is to inactivate microorganisms. The phylogenetic preservation of this energy-consuming and, at times, hazardous function (acid-related diseases) reflects its biological importance. Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) are one of the most widely used drugs in the world. Due to the reduced prevalence of Helicobacter pylori infection as well as the increased use of inhibitors of gastric acid secretion, the latter has become the most important cause of gastric hypoacidity. In the present manuscript, we review the microbiological consequences of removing gastric acidity. The resulting susceptibility to infections has not been studied extensively, and focus has mainly been restricted to bacterial and parasitic agents only. The strongest evidence concerning the relationship between hypochlorhydria and predisposition to infections relates to bacterial infections affecting the gastrointestinal tract. However, several other clinical settings with increased susceptibility to infections due to inhibited gastric acidity are discussed. We also discuss the impact of hypochlorhydria on the gut microbiome.
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spelling pubmed-69289042019-12-26 The Phylogeny and Biological Function of Gastric Juice—Microbiological Consequences of Removing Gastric Acid Martinsen, Tom C. Fossmark, Reidar Waldum, Helge L. Int J Mol Sci Review Gastric juice is a unique combination of hydrochloric acid (HCl), lipase, and pepsin. Acidic gastric juice is found in all vertebrates, and its main function is to inactivate microorganisms. The phylogenetic preservation of this energy-consuming and, at times, hazardous function (acid-related diseases) reflects its biological importance. Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) are one of the most widely used drugs in the world. Due to the reduced prevalence of Helicobacter pylori infection as well as the increased use of inhibitors of gastric acid secretion, the latter has become the most important cause of gastric hypoacidity. In the present manuscript, we review the microbiological consequences of removing gastric acidity. The resulting susceptibility to infections has not been studied extensively, and focus has mainly been restricted to bacterial and parasitic agents only. The strongest evidence concerning the relationship between hypochlorhydria and predisposition to infections relates to bacterial infections affecting the gastrointestinal tract. However, several other clinical settings with increased susceptibility to infections due to inhibited gastric acidity are discussed. We also discuss the impact of hypochlorhydria on the gut microbiome. MDPI 2019-11-29 /pmc/articles/PMC6928904/ /pubmed/31795477 http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijms20236031 Text en © 2019 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
spellingShingle Review
Martinsen, Tom C.
Fossmark, Reidar
Waldum, Helge L.
The Phylogeny and Biological Function of Gastric Juice—Microbiological Consequences of Removing Gastric Acid
title The Phylogeny and Biological Function of Gastric Juice—Microbiological Consequences of Removing Gastric Acid
title_full The Phylogeny and Biological Function of Gastric Juice—Microbiological Consequences of Removing Gastric Acid
title_fullStr The Phylogeny and Biological Function of Gastric Juice—Microbiological Consequences of Removing Gastric Acid
title_full_unstemmed The Phylogeny and Biological Function of Gastric Juice—Microbiological Consequences of Removing Gastric Acid
title_short The Phylogeny and Biological Function of Gastric Juice—Microbiological Consequences of Removing Gastric Acid
title_sort phylogeny and biological function of gastric juice—microbiological consequences of removing gastric acid
topic Review
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6928904/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31795477
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijms20236031
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