Detoxification of the Helicobacter pylori cytotoxin

Treatment of the Helicobacter pylori vacuolating cytotoxin with very low concentrations of formaldehyde resulted in abrogation of toxic activity in both a HeLa cell vacuolation assay and an in vivo assay of gastric epithelial damage. Detoxification had only a minimal effect on the integrity of the oligomeric or monomeric structure. The toxoid retained the ability to bind to target cells and to induce high-titer neutralizing antibodies after immunization of rabbits. Furthermore, oral immunization of mice with the toxoid resulted in protection against infective challenge with mouse-adapted strains of H. pylori. The sensitivity of the toxin to formaldehyde treatment suggests that a few lysine residues in the protein may be essential for toxic activity and that VacA detoxified in this manner may be a potential candidate for inclusion in a vaccine against H. pylori infection and disease.