Vibrio cholerae O139 O-antigen (O139 O-antigen)

The Vibrio cholerae O139 O-antigen is a specialized polysaccharide component of the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) found on the surface of the O139 serogroup of Vibrio cholerae. First identified during the 1992 epidemic in India and Bangladesh, this antigen is distinct from the O1 serogroup due to its unique hexasaccharide repeating unit and its association with a protective capsule (Manning et al., 1994). It plays a vital role in the pathogen's virulence by protecting the bacterium from the host's innate immune system, particularly complement-mediated killing and phagocytosis (Chatterjee & Chaudhuri, 2003). As a primary target for protective immunity, the O139 O-antigen is a mandatory component in bivalent oral cholera vaccines (OCVs) to ensure broad protection against epidemic-causing strains (WHO, 2017). Therapeutic strategies primarily involve the use of this antigen in whole-cell or conjugate vaccines to elicit high-titer, long-lasting vibriocidal antibodies that prevent intestinal colonization (Bhattacharya et al., 2013). Because immunity is serogroup-specific, protection against the O1 serogroup does not extend to O139, making this molecule a critical focus for global public health and vaccine development (Wierzba et al., 2015).

Other names

Vibrio cholerae O139 lipopolysaccharideO139 LPSBengal O-antigenO139 O-specific polysaccharideO139 O-SPVibrio cholerae O139 capsular polysaccharide

Induction of serogroup-specific vibriocidal antibodies (IgG, IgM, and secretory IgA) that bind to the O-antigen on the bacterial surface, mediating complement-dependent lysis and preventing intestinal colonization (WHO, 2017; Bhattacharya et al., 2013).