Genome sequences of three Helicobacter pylori strains from patients with mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma. Helicobacter pylori strain:ML1, ML2, ML3

Helicobacter pylori, a Gram-negative, microaerophilic bacterium, plays an oncogenic role in the development of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma, that accounts for approximately 3% of all gastric tumors. H. pylori infection stimulates the production of lymphoid infiltrates, which leads to the formation of acquired MALT in the gastric mucosa. As a result of chronic immunological stimulation, infiltrating B-cells actively proliferate and occasionally undergo malignant transformation because of the acquisition of genetic abnormalities. So far, the roles of major known virulence factors of H. pylori in MALT lymphomagenesis remained controversial. In the present report, we presented the genome sequences of three H. pylori strains ML1, ML2, and ML3, which were isolated from three patients with gastric MALT lymphoma, respectively. Whole genome sequencing was performed using the 454 pyrosequencing technology. The availability of these genome sequences would provide the research community with a resource for detailed investigation into genetic elements that contribute to lymphomagenesis by comparative genomic approaches.