Dataset Information

Genotypic variation in the Bordetella pertussis virulence factors pertactin and pertussis toxin in historical and recent clinical isolates in the United Kingdom.

ABSTRACT: The reemergence of pertussis has been reported in several countries despite high vaccination coverage. Studies in The Netherlands and Finland have investigated polymorphism in the genes coding for two important virulence factors of Bordetella pertussis, pertactin and pertussis toxin, and identified the emergence and subsequent dominance in circulating strains of pertactin and toxin variants not found in the whole-cell vaccine (WCV). The study described here investigated whether such variation had occurred in the United Kingdom, which presently has low levels of pertussis. Sequence analysis of the genes for pertactin (prnA) and the pertussis toxin S1 subunit (ptxA) among isolates of B. pertussis from 285 United Kingdom patients, from 1920 to 1999, revealed three prnA variants, prnA(1), prnA(2), and prnA(3), and two ptxA variants, ptxA(1) and ptxA(2), showing differences in nucleic acid sequence. The proportion of pertactin gene types not included in the United Kingdom WCV, i.e., prnA(2) and prnA(3), has increased in recent years and was found in 21 of 86 (24%) strains from the 1980s and 56 of 105 (53%) strains from the 1990s. To date, the presence of these nonvaccine prnA types has not been associated with a resurgence of pertussis in the United Kingdom. The distribution of prnA and ptxA types in The Netherlands, Finland, and the United Kingdom in the 1990s is distinct. The most striking difference in the United Kingdom isolates is that all 105 of the most recent circulating strains (from 1998 to 1999) are of a pertussis toxin type found in the United Kingdom WCV, i.e., ptxA(1).

SUBMITTER: Fry NK

PROVIDER: S-EPMC98665 | biostudies-literature | 2001 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Genotypic variation in the Bordetella pertussis virulence factors pertactin and pertussis toxin in historical and recent clinical isolates in the United Kingdom.

Fry N K NK Neal S S Harrison T G TG Miller E E Matthews R R George R C RC

Infection and immunity 20010901 9

The reemergence of pertussis has been reported in several countries despite high vaccination coverage. Studies in The Netherlands and Finland have investigated polymorphism in the genes coding for two important virulence factors of Bordetella pertussis, pertactin and pertussis toxin, and identified the emergence and subsequent dominance in circulating strains of pertactin and toxin variants not found in the whole-cell vaccine (WCV). The study described here investigated whether such variation ha ...[more]

PMID: 11500425

Similar Datasets

Project description:BACKGROUND:Acellular Pertussis vaccines against whooping cough caused by Bordetella pertussis present a much-improved safety profile compared to the original vaccine of killed whole cells. The principal antigen of acellular Pertussis vaccine, Pertussis Toxin (PT), must be chemically inactivated to obtain the corresponding toxoid (PTd). This process, however, results in extensive denaturation of the antigen. The development of acellular Pertussis vaccines containing PTd or recombinant PT (rPT) with inactivated S1, Filamentous Hemagglutinin (FHA), and Pertactin (PRN) has shown that the yield of PRN was limiting, whereas FHA was overproduced. To improve antigen yields and process economics, we have constructed strains of Bordetella pertussis that produce enhanced levels of both rPT and PRN. RESULTS:Three recombinant strains of Bordetella pertussis were obtained by homologous recombination using an allelic exchange vector, pSS4245. In the first construct, the segment encoding PT subunit S1 was replaced by two mutations (R9K and E129G) that removed PT toxicity and Bp-WWC strain was obtained. In the second construct, a second copy of the whole cluster of PT structural genes containing the above mutations was inserted elsewhere into the chromosome of Bp-WWC and the Bp-WWD strain was obtained. This strain generated increased amounts of rPT (3.77 ± 0.53 ?g/mL) compared to Bp-WWC (2.61 ± 0.16 ?g/mL) and wild type strain (2.2 ?g/mL). In the third construct, a second copy of the prn gene was inserted into the chromosome of Bp-WWD to obtain Bp-WWE. Strain Bp-WWE produced PRN at 4.18 ± 1.02 ?g/mL in the cell extract which was about two-fold higher than Bp-WWC (2.48 ± 0.10 ?g/mL) and Bp-WWD (2.31 ± 0.17 ?g/mL). Purified PTd from Bp-WWD at 0.8-1.6 ?g/well did not show any toxicity against Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell whereas purified PT from WT demonstrated a cell clustering endpoint at 2.6 pg/well. CONCLUSIONS:We have constructed Bordetella pertussis strains expressing increased amounts of the antigens, rPT or rPT and PRN. Expression of the third antigen, FHA was unchanged (always in excess). These strains will be useful for the manufacture of affordable acellular Pertussis vaccines.

Dataset Information

Genotypic variation in the Bordetella pertussis virulence factors pertactin and pertussis toxin in historical and recent clinical isolates in the United Kingdom.

Publications

Genotypic variation in the Bordetella pertussis virulence factors pertactin and pertussis toxin in historical and recent clinical isolates in the United Kingdom.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets