www.wjgnet.com BRIEF ARTICLES Characterization of clarithromycin resistance in Malaysian isolates of Helicobacter pylori

AIM: To characterize the types of mutations present in the 23S rRNA genes of Malaysian isolates of clarithromycin-resistant Helicobacter pylori (H pylori). METHODS: Clarithromycin susceptibility of H pylori isolates was determined by E test. Analyses for point mutations in the domain V of 23S rRNA genes in clarithromycin-resistant and-sensitive strains were performed by sequence analysis of amplified polymerase chain reaction products. Restriction fragment length polymorphism was performed using Bsa and Mbo enzymes to detect restriction sites that correspond to the mutations in the clarithromycin-resistant strains. RESULTS: Of 187 isolates from 120 patients, four wer