Editorial Material
Microbiology
Nicholas Carbonetti
Summary: This study used a mouse model and cellular studies to investigate the bacterial and host factors that contribute to cough production during Bordetella pertussis infection. The researchers found that bacterial factors pertussis toxin, lipooligosaccharide, and Vag8 function cooperatively to produce cough, and identified the host bradykinin and signaling pathways involved. This finding is highly significant as it enhances our understanding of the pathophysiology of severe cough and may lead to potential new therapeutic approaches for pertussis-induced cough.
Article
Immunology
Rajlakshmi Viswanathan, Sanjay Bafna, Manohar Lal Choudhary, Monika Reddy, Savita Katendra, Shradha Maheshwari, Sheetal Jadhav
Summary: Pertussis, also known as whooping cough, is a poorly controlled vaccine-preventable disease. its clinical diagnosis in young children is challenging and often confused with other respiratory infections. Accurate diagnosis of prolonged cough illness is important for appropriate management and estimation of disease burden.
Article
Immunology
Alam Jamal, Sadaf Jahan, Hani Choudhry, Irfan A. Rather, Mohammad Imran Khan
Summary: Using a computational approach, this study identified potential drug targets for pertussis and provided new insights for designing therapeutic molecules against bacterial infections.
Review
Infectious Diseases
Lauri Ivaska, Alex-Mikael Barkoff, Jussi Mertsola, Qiushui He
Summary: This review summarizes the current understanding of the epidemiology, resistance mechanisms, and clinical implications of macrolide resistance in Bordetella pertussis. China has seen a high prevalence of macrolide-resistant B. pertussis, while sporadic cases have been reported in other parts of the world.
Article
Immunology
Michael D. Decker, Kathryn M. Edwards
Summary: Pertussis, caused by Bordetella pertussis, is a respiratory infection that affects all age groups. While widespread use of pertussis vaccines has dramatically reduced cases, concerns over waning vaccine immunity have led to the evaluation of new vaccines to address this issue.
JOURNAL OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Yang Liao, Wei-ran Li, Yu Zhu, Shuang-hong Luo, Qiong Liao, Chao-min Wan
Summary: This article reports a case of malignant pertussis in a 2-month-old boy, who presented with respiratory failure, severe pneumonia, septic shock, and encephalopathy. Bordetella pertussis was detected using polymerase chain reaction and metagenomics next-generation sequencing from nasopharyngeal secretions, blood, and cerebrospinal fluid samples.
OPEN FORUM INFECTIOUS DISEASES
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Angela Esposito Ferronato, Daniela Leite, Sandra Elisabete Vieira
Summary: In a study of infants suspected of pertussis, respiratory virus infections were found to be common and may exceed Bordetella pertussis infections. Clinical and laboratory characteristics may suggest the etiology, but they are not specific.
JOURNAL OF MICROBIOLOGY IMMUNOLOGY AND INFECTION
(2021)
Review
Immunology
Krista Wilkinson, Christiaan H. Righolt, Lawrence J. Elliott, Sergio Fanella, Salaheddin M. Mahmud
Summary: The study found that receiving any type of pertussis vaccine provides short-term protection, but the protection of acellular vaccine decreases rapidly. Additionally, significant heterogeneity was detected in vaccine effectiveness studies, which could be mitigated through study design.
Article
Immunology
Colleen J. Sedney, Amanda Caulfield, Kaylan K. Dewan, Uriel Blas-Machado, Maiya Callender, Nancy R. Manley, Eric T. Harvill
Summary: The increased susceptibility of neonates to specific pathogens has previously been attributed to an underdeveloped immune system. More recent data suggest neonates have effective protection against most pathogens but are particularly susceptible to those that target immune functions specific to neonates. Bordetella pertussis (Bp), the causative agent of whooping cough, causes more serious disease in infants attributed to its production of pertussis toxin (PTx), although the neonate-specific immune functions it targets remain unknown. The study found that neonatal mice from five to eight days old are more susceptible to Bp than slightly older mice, and they can effectively respond to and control Bp lacking PTx. PTx efficiently blocks some very effective form(s) of neonatal protective immunity, potentially providing a tool to better understand the neonatal immune system. The results also demonstrate a striking age-dependent response to Bp and define an early age of extreme susceptibility to Bp. The study's findings may be useful in studying other pathogens that primarily infect neonates and PTx may prove a particularly valuable tool for probing the poorly understood neonatal immune system.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Yukihiro Hiramatsu, Koichiro Suzuki, Takashi Nishida, Naoki Onoda, Takashi Satoh, Shizuo Akira, Masahito Ikawa, Hiroko Ikeda, Junzo Kamei, Sandra Derouiche, Makoto Tominaga, Yasuhiko Horiguchi
Summary: The Gram-negative bacterium Bordetella pertussis causes whooping cough, a respiratory disease characterized by paroxysmal coughing. However, the mechanism of coughing has not been extensively studied. In this study, a mouse model was used to reproduce coughing after intranasal inoculation with the bacterium. It was found that lipooligosaccharide, Vag8, and pertussis toxin of the bacteria cooperatively function to cause coughing. Bradykinin and TRPV1 were identified as host factors involved in the coughing mechanism.
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Natalie Ring, Heather Davies, Julie Morgan, Maithreyi Sundaresan, Audrey Tiong, Andrew Preston, Stefan Bagby
Summary: This study sequenced B. pertussis isolates from New Zealand and found that the genomic trends are similar to those seen worldwide. Additionally, there are strains circulating in New Zealand that are closely related to each other but cluster separately from global strains.
MICROBIAL GENOMICS
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Luis Solans, Anne-Sophie Debrie, Loic Coutte, Camille Locht
Summary: The live attenuated nasal vaccine BPZE1 has shown promise in preventing both pertussis disease and infection, with clinical development underway. A pertactin-deficient derivative called BPZE1P has been developed to address vaccine take limitations due to pre-existing antibodies. Both vaccines demonstrated efficacy in protecting against pertussis challenge, including pertactin-deficient strains.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Fabiana Fiasca, Stefano Necozione, Antonella Mattei
Summary: Despite high vaccination coverage, whooping cough remains a significant public health issue in Italy, especially among unimmunized infants under 3 months old who have the highest hospitalization rates showing a yearly increase. The study highlights the importance of additional immunization strategies, including vaccination during pregnancy, to protect pediatric populations vulnerable to pertussis.
HUMAN VACCINES & IMMUNOTHERAPEUTICS
(2021)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Krista Wilkinson, Christiaan H. Righolt, Lawrence J. Elliott, Sergio Fanella, Salaheddin M. Mahmud
Summary: The highest risk for pertussis is consistently in young children, and the 1981 programme change to a low effective adsorbed whole-cell pertussis vaccine resulted in reduced protection in the 1981-1995 birth cohort and contributed to the largest outbreak of disease.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EPIDEMIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Saidy Vasconez Noguera, Katherine Jaramillo, Andres Zabala, Jose E. Villacis
Summary: This study used PCR to determine the prevalence of Bordetella pertussis and Bordetella parapertussis infections among infants under one year of age in the Ecuadorian highlands. The results showed that 41% of the samples were positive for B. pertussis, with a majority of the cases occurring in infants aged 0-3 months. Additionally, the study highlighted the importance of active national surveillance of pertussis, particularly for laboratory testing.
REVISTA ARGENTINA DE MICROBIOLOGIA
(2021)
