Kaisa Thorell, Zilia Y Muñoz-Ramírez, Difei Wang, Santiago Sandoval-Motta, Rajiv Boscolo Agostini, Silvia Ghirotto, Roberto C Torres; HpGP Research Network (inc. Xavier Didelot); Daniel Falush, M Constanza Camargo, Charles S Rabkin

Helicobacter pylori, a dominant member of the gastric microbiota, shares co-evolutionary history with humans. This has led to the development of genetically distinct H. pylori subpopulations associated with the geographic origin of the host and with differential gastric disease risk. Here, we provide insights into H. pylori population structure as a part of the Helicobacter pylori Genome Project (HpGP), a multi-disciplinary initiative aimed at elucidating H. pylori pathogenesis and identifying new therapeutic targets. We collected 1011 well-characterized clinical strains from 50 countries and generated high-quality genome sequences. We analysed core genome diversity and population structure of the HpGP dataset and 255 worldwide reference genomes to outline the ancestral contribution to Eurasian, African, and American populations. We expect the HpGP dataset and the corresponding strains to become a major asset for H. pylori genomics.

Nature Communications. December 2023