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Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Biomolecules

When VacA Meets Immune Cells: Beyond Vacuolation

  • Yi Teng1,2
  • Hewei Luan1
  • Dongwei Zhu2
  • Shengjun Wang2,3
  1. 1Department of Laboratory Medicine, Affiliated Jurong Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212400, China
  2. 2Department of Immunology, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Laboratory Medicine, School of Clinical Medicine & Laboratory Medicine, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China
  3. 3Department of Laboratory Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212001, China
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Abstract

Vacuolating cytotoxin A (VacA) is a critical virulence factor of Helicobacter pylori and is closely associated with chronic gastric diseases and gastric cancer. This review systematically summarizes the gene polymorphism, protein structure, functional characteristics, cellular receptors, and vacuolation mechanism of VacA. VacA interacts with diverse immune cells including T cells, B cells, macrophages, dendritic cells and neutrophils, reshaping the immune microenvironment to facilitate the immune evasion and persistent colonization of H. pylori. The genotypic polymorphisms of VacA correlate with the severity of gastric lesions and gastric cancer risk. At present, VacA can be applied in the auxiliary risk stratification of gastric cancer and rapid virulence genotyping. Nevertheless, specific inhibitors and vaccines targeting VacA remain in pre-clinical exploration and are not routinely used in clinical practice. Further investigation into its immunomodulatory molecular mechanisms will provide novel insights for the prevention and treatment of H. pylori-associated diseases.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{teng2026when,
  title = {{When VacA Meets Immune Cells: Beyond Vacuolation}},
  author = {Yi Teng and Hewei Luan and Dongwei Zhu and Shengjun Wang},
  journal = {Biomolecules},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.3390/biom16111552},
  url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2218-273X/16/11/1552},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - When VacA Meets Immune Cells: Beyond Vacuolation
AU  - Yi Teng
AU  - Hewei Luan
AU  - Dongwei Zhu
AU  - Shengjun Wang
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/24
JO  - Biomolecules
DO  - 10.3390/biom16111552
UR  - https://www.mdpi.com/2218-273X/16/11/1552
AB  - Vacuolating cytotoxin A (VacA) is a critical virulence factor of Helicobacter pylori and is closely associated with chronic gastric diseases and gastric cancer. This review systematically summarizes the gene polymorphism, protein structure, functional characteristics, cellular receptors, and vacuolation mechanism of VacA. VacA interacts with diverse immune cells including T cells, B cells, macrophages, dendritic cells and neutrophils, reshaping the immune microenvironment to facilitate the immune evasion and persistent colonization of H. pylori. The genotypic polymorphisms of VacA correlate with the severity of gastric lesions and gastric cancer risk. At present, VacA can be applied in the auxiliary risk stratification of gastric cancer and rapid virulence genotyping. Nevertheless, specific inhibitors and vaccines targeting VacA remain in pre-clinical exploration and are not routinely used in clinical practice. Further investigation into its immunomodulatory molecular mechanisms will provide novel insights for the prevention and treatment of H. pylori-associated diseases.
SN  - 2218-273X
ER  -