Ulcer Formation Essay

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Ulcer

Many people say that an ulcer is caused by stress whereas scientific journals states that it is caused by bacteria. Actually, ulcer has traditionally been thought as a condition brought by stress as well as the consumption of coffee and spicy foods. Generally, an ulcer was believed to be a by-product of lifestyle factors like diet and stress. In the past few years, it has emerged that an ulcer is caused by a bacterial infection as stated in various scientific journals on ulcers. This change can be attributed to the fact that researchers determined that stomach acids like hydrochloric acid generates the formation of an ulcer. The determination that an ulcer is largely caused by bacterial infections raises concerns on whether bacteria survive the gastric juice and cause harm to an individual's body.

Gastric juice is primarily made of hydrochloric acid and pepsin, an enzyme that breaks down protein. Given its function, pepsin has the ability to digest any living tissue including the stomach and duodenum, which are constantly covered in gastric acid. However, the stomach is prevented from digesting itself through protective means such as the working of prostaglandins that manages mucus secretion from the stomach lining. Gastric juice is one of the stomach acids that are crucial in protecting against bacteria such as H. pylori, which causes ulcers.

Based on the findings of scientific research, I think that a bacterium can survive gastric juice and cause harm to the body such as contributing to ulcer formation and development.

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This is primarily because bacteria can survive highly acidic environment and eventually cause harm to the body. For instance, H. pylori, which is the bacterium associated with ulcer formation, survives the highly acidic environment in the stomach that is saturated with gastric acid through generating urease, which is an enzyme that neutralizes acidity through creating ammonia. This example demonstrates that bacteria have the ability to survive acidic environment by producing enzymes or other chemicals to neutralize the acidic environment. Following the production of enzymes that neutralize stomach acids, bacteria can cause harm to the body since they lessen the ability of stomach acids to protect the body from diseases. Once the strength of stomach acids are neutralized or lessened, the body becomes increasingly vulnerable to diseases such as ulcers, which begin to form and develop.

An example of a bacterium that survives gastric juice in the stomach and eventually harms the body is H. pylori. This bacterium is corkscrew shaped, which enables it to infiltrate the stomach or duodenum's mucus layer in order to attach itself to the lining. After neutralizing stomach acid through the production of an enzyme, H. pylori create several toxins and factors that not only generate inflammation and damage the stomach and intestinal lining, which leads to ulcers. In cases where it does not contribute to ulcers, H.….....

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