Abstract
OBJECTIVES: Recently, the appearance ofHelicobacter pylori (H. pylori) resistant to antibiotics has been reported. The development of an antibiotic therapy which would not induce resistant strains ofH. pylori is anticipated. In the present study, the antibiotic effect of black tea aqueous non-dialysate (BTND), the fraction different from tea catechins, onH. pylori was investigated using Mongolian gerbils infected withH. pylori. METHODS: BTND was extracted from black tea leaves. A 0.1 w/v% solution of BTND or green tea catechins (GTC) was provided as drinking water to male NGS/Sea Mongolian gerbils infected withH. pylori (ATCC43504) for two weeks. Their stomachs were then excised, the mucosal surfaces were macroscopically observed, and colony forming units (CFU) ofH. pylori were counted. The data were compared between the BTND and GTC groups. RESULTS: The CFU ofH. pylori were significantly decreased by intake of BTND. The body weight of the animals tended to be larger in the group supplied with BTND than in that supplied with GTC. Gastric mucosal injury tended to be smaller in the animals supplied with BTND than in those with GTC. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that BTND may have an inhibitory effect onH. pylori infection.