Common stomach pathogen may protect against tuberculosis

The bacterium that causes ulcers and majority of stomach cancers may play a protective role against tuberculosis (TB), say researchers.

The study by researchers at Stanford University, UC Davis, and the University of Pittsburgh has been published in PloS ONE.

In the report, Jay Solnick, UC Davis professor of medicine and microbiology, and his co-authors stated that H. pylori infection may enhance immunity against tuberculosis, a disease endemic in many parts of the world, and for which there is no effective vaccine.

"Here is a bacterium that we know is sometimes harmful and that is clearly associated with cancer," Solnick said. "But it's not that simple."

"These new findings suggest that one such benefit may be that H. pylori provides protection against tuberculosis, and perhaps other infectious diseases as well," he said.