Patterns of Bordetella parapertussis respiratory illnesses: 2008-2010.

O antigen protects Bordetella parapertussis from complement.

Bordetella pertussis, a causative agent of whooping cough, expresses BrkA, which confers serum resistance, but the closely related human pathogen that also causes whooping cough, Bordetella parapertussis, does not. Interestingly, B. parapertussis, but not B. pertussis, produces an O antigen, a factor shown in other models to confer serum resistance. Using a murine model of infection, we determi...

IL-10 Induction by Bordetella parapertussis Limits a Protective IFN-g Response

IL-10 induction by Bordetella parapertussis limits a protective IFN-gamma response.

Bordetella parapertussis causes the prolonged coughing illness known as pertussis or whooping cough, persisting for weeks within the respiratory tracts of infected hosts but inducing a very poor T cell response relative to that induced by Bordetella pertussis, the more common cause of pertussis. In this study, we examine the contributions of cytokines involved in the clearance of B. parapertuss...

Role of systemic and mucosal immune responses in reciprocal protection against Bordetella pertussis and Bordetella parapertussis in a murine model of respiratory infection.

The roles of systemic humoral immunity, cell-mediated immunity, and mucosal immunity in reciprocal protective immunity against Bordetella pertussis and Bordetella parapertussis were examined by using a murine model of respiratory infection. Passive immunization with serum from mice infected with B. pertussis established protective immunity against B. pertussis but not against B. parapertussis. ...

Infection with Bordetella parapertussis but not Bordetella pertussis causes pertussis-like disease in older pigs.

The 3 major Bordetella species--namely, B. pertussis, B. parapertussis, and B. bronchiseptica--can be distinguished by their different host ranges. B. bronchiseptica infects a wide range of mammals (including humans), whereas B. pertussis infects only humans and, under experimental conditions, mice and pigs. In contrast, B. parapertussis, also a causative agent of pertussis, displays a unique h...