Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is a common gastric pathogen that causes gastritis, peptic ulcer disease, and gastric adenocarcinoma. Helicobacter pylori neutrophil-activating protein (HP-NAP) is a virulence factor of H. pylori. According to epidemiology reports in Taiwan, more than ten million people are infected with H. pylori among healthy population in Taiwan, and those people are also a high-risk group of suffering gastric adenocarcinoma. Therefore, infection of H. pylori becomes an important public health issue. Generally, drugs for treating H. pylori can be categorized into several groups, including: gastric acid suppressants, e.g. Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPIs) (e.g. Esomeprazole, Lansoprazole, Pantoprazole and Rabeprazole) and antibiotics (e.g. Amoxicillin and Clarithromycin).
H. pylori is closely associated with chronic gastritis, peptic ulcer disease, and gastric adenocarcinoma and lymphoma. HP-NAP, a virulence factor of H. pylori, plays an important role in pathogenesis of H. pylori infection. Since HP-NAP has been proposed as a candidate vaccine against H. pylori infection, an efficient way to obtain pure HP-NAP protein needs to be developed.