New tech turns your tummy bright green if you have ulcers

Researchers have developed a new technique that turns your stomach bright green if it is infected with ulcer-causing bacteria.
When patients are examined for ulcers, a tissue sample is retrieved from the stomach. This requires the doctor to send an instrument down into the patient's stomach.
The patient must wait for the tissue sample to be analysed before the doctor can give information about a possible ulcer.
Researchers from University of Southern Denmark have developed a diagnostic technique that makes it possible to detect the ulcer instantly.
"Early diagnosis does not only prevent ulcers from developing, it can also prevent the development of cancer", said student Silvia Fontenete from the Nucleic Acid Center at the University of Southern Denmark/Laboratory for Process Engineering, Environment, Biotechnology and Energy, University of Porto in Portugal.

Ulcers are often caused by the bacteria Helicobacter pylori, which produces ulcers in the stomach or duodenum.

Usually the doctor retrieves a tissue sample from the stomach and has it analysed. You can also take a breath test, where molecules in the patient's breath are analysed, but this technique is not always reliable, said Silvia Fontenete.
Scientists have for some time been able to make tissue samples from the stomach glow fluorescent green if the tissue is infected with H pylori bacteria.
For this the scientist will need to retrieve a piece of the stomach for analysis in the laboratory.

The researchers' new approach is to make the stomach glow bright fluorescent green without taking tissue samples from it.
"Our laboratory experiments suggest that one day it will be possible for doctors to send some specially designed molecules down in the stomach, where they will make H pylori glow brightly green," said Silvia Fontenete.
To see the green light the doctor will send a small micro-camera into the stomach.
The scientists have made H pylori glow green in artificial tissue in the laboratory - this was tissue that mimics the lining of the human stomach.
"We believe that the same can happen in a real human stomach", said Silvia Fontenete.

The study was published in the journal PLOS ONE.