# Control of Flagellation Pattern in Helicobacter pylori

> **NIH NIH R03** · UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA · 2020 · $75,500

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
 Helicobacter pylori is the major pathogenic factor for peptic ulcer disease, as well as a major risk factor for
gastric cancer and mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma. H. pylori cells use a cluster of polar flagella
for motility, which is required for colonization of the stomach epithelium. Our knowledge of the mechanisms
used by bacteria to regulate the localization and number of flagella is superficial. As is the case in many polar
flagellated bacteria, H. pylori uses the GTPase FlhF and the ATPase FlhG to control the localization and number
of flagella, respectively. Guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs) facilitate the conversion of GDP-bound to
GTP-bound forms of many signal transducing GTPases, but a GEF has not been reported to date for FlhF.
Downstream of H. pylori flhG is a gene that we found to be required for maintaining the normal number of flagella,
which we designate as flhH. We hypothesize FlhH is a GEF for FlhF. To understand the role of FlhH, two Specific
Aims will be pursued: (1) To determine whether FlhH stimulates guanine nucleotide exchange in FlhF, (2) To
identify determinants that affect FlhH activity or by-pass its requirement in maintaining flagella number. The
proposed work will a fill critical gap in our knowledge of how H. pylori and other bacteria control flagella number.
Since motility is required for host colonization by H. pylori, the new information generated from the proposed
studies may lead to the identification of new targets and strategies for treatment of H. pylori infections.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9931136
- **Project number:** 5R03AI146907-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA
- **Principal Investigator:** Timothy Randall Hoover
- **Activity code:** R03 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $75,500
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-05-17 → 2022-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9931136

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9931136, Control of Flagellation Pattern in Helicobacter pylori (5R03AI146907-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-11 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9931136. Licensed CC0.

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