Presumptive mechanisms of peptic ulceration by Helicobacter pylori VacA involving mucoprotease and CagA.

Helicobacter pylori vacuolating toxin (VacA) appears to be unusually stable, not only against extreme pH conditions or high temperatures, but also against common organic solvents or detergents. Under acidic conditions, its activity was markedly increased in the manner of temperature-independent, suggesting a spontaneous activation. A similar finding was also observed under alkaline conditions, however, it should have an appropriate temperature. From these observations, the mechanisms of VacA activation were suggested to be so redundant that either the case of acidic or basic amino acid residues could be involved in the VacA activation. Separately, we also found that the VacA production by H. pylori was pH-dependent: Its production was increased at a low pH region with a broad range (1.0-5.0), and at a high pH region with a narrow range (8.0-9.0). Astonishingly, a highly immunogenic CagA did not appear to be expressed under the acidic conditions. Its expression, however, was shown to be enhanced when the surrounding pH of this bacterium was raised. In contrast, mucoproteolytic activity in the H. pylori membrane was found to be increased at acidic conditions. Considering these observations, together with the stomach and duodenal pH of humans, two presumptive mechanisms of H. pylori VacA-associated ulceration may be deduced; namely, an acid- and an alkali-dependent type, involving mucoprotease and CagA, respectively.