Publication Name	World Journal of Gastroenterology
Manuscript ID	115984
Country	China

Category	Microbiology
Manuscript Type	Letter to the Editor
Article Title	Rethinking Helicobacter pylori culture: Toward precision media for a fastidious pathogen
Manuscript Source	Invited Manuscript
All Author List	Cheng-Fei Zhao, Xiao-Ting Xu, Shen-Yi Ye, Tian-Hui Liu and Zhi-Feng Xu
Funding Agency and Grant Number	Funding Agency Grant Number Natural Science Foundation of Fujian Province 2023J01160 Scientific Research Project of Putian University 2022059 Special Project for Outstanding Young Talents of Putian University 2024072
Corresponding Author	Zhi-Feng Xu, Chief Physician, Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, The 95th Hospital of Putian, No. 485 Dongyan Road, Licheng District, Putian 351100, Fujian Province, China. zhifengxu1972@163.com
Key Words	Reproducibility; Host-microbe; Precision microbiology; Fastidious pathogen; Precision media; Helicobacter pylori
Core Tip	Cultivating Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) remains one of persistent challenges in microbiology due to its stringent nutritional and microaerophilic growth requirements. A recent comparative study across ten liquid media and nine H. pylori strains demonstrated that growth efficiency is highly dependent on both medium composition and strain-specific characteristics. Chopped meat carbohydrate broth, Columbia broth (CB), and fastidious anaerobe broth supported significantly better growth than conventional Brucella broth. These findings underscore that culture media are not passive substrates but active determinants of microbial physiology. An ideal precision medium should be defined not only by its ability to support high biomass but also by its capacity to maintain H. pylori in its viable, spiral form. Such optimization may improve experimental reproducibility and facilitate advances in diagnostics, antimicrobial susceptibility testing, and vaccine development.
Citation	Zhao CF, Xu XT, Ye SY, Liu TH, Xu ZF. Rethinking Helicobacter pylori culture: Toward precision media for a fastidious pathogen. World J Gastroenterol 2026; In press

Received	2025-10-31 05:37
Peer-Review Started	2025-10-31 05:38
First Decision by Editorial Office Director	2025-11-19 11:00
Return for Revision	2025-11-19 11:00
Revised	2025-12-03 10:27
Publication Fee Transferred
Second Decision by Editor	2026-01-12 02:38
Second Decision by Editor-in-Chief
Final Decision by Editorial Office Director	2026-01-12 12:47
Articles in Press	2026-01-12 12:47
Edit the Manuscript by Language Editor
Typeset the Manuscript

ISSN	1007-9327 (print) and 2219-2840 (online)
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