Identification of potential drug targets in Helicobacter pylori strain HPAG1 by in silico genome analysis.

Helicobacter pylori colonizes the stomach, causing gastritis, peptic ulcers and gastric carcinoma. Drugs for treatment of H. pylori relieve from gastritis or pain but are not specific to H. pylori. Therefore, there is an immediate requirement for new therapeutic molecules to treat H. pylori. Current study investigates identification of drug targets in the strain HPAG1 of H. pylori by in silico genome analysis. Genome of HPAG1 was reconstructed for metabolic pathways and compared with Homosapien sapiens to identify genes which are unique to H. pylori. These unique genes were subjected to gene property analysis to identify the potentiality of the drug targets. Among the total number of genes analysed in H. pylori strain HPAG1, nearly 542 genes qualified as unique molecules and among them 29 were identified to be potential drug targets. Co/Zn/Cd efflux system membrane fusion protein, Ferric sidephore transport system and biopolymer transport protein EXbB were found to be critical drug targets to H. pylori HPAG1. Five genes (superoxide dismutase, HtrA protease/chaperone protein, Heatinducible transcription repressor HrcA, HspR, transcriptional repressor of DnaK operon, Cobalt-zinccadmium resistance protein CzcA) of the 29 predicted drug targets are already experimentally validated either genetically or biochemically lending credence to our unique approach.