Project

Whooping cough is a vaccine-preventable disease due to Bordetella pertussis. Even if vaccination has allowed the control of the disease, isolates are still circulating and cyclic increases of incidence are observed every 3 to 5 years even in vaccinated countries. Most developed countries now use acellular vaccines containing 3 to 5 vaccine antigens (pertussis toxin (PT), filamentous hemagglutinin (FHA), pertactin (PRN) fimbrial proteins (FIM2/FIM3)) that have replaced whole cell vaccines. In regions vaccinating with acellular vaccines with a high coverage, isolates no more producing some vaccine antigens (mainly PRN) have been reported in the last years.   Bordetella pertussis reference genome has been fully annotated in 2003 by the Sanger Institute. Analysis and comparison of different B.pertussis genomic sequences showed that circulating B.pertussis isolates differ from vaccine and reference strains. Genome evolution is characterized by gene deletions, antigenic divergences, SNP accumulations…Recent genomic analysis gathering isolates from different countries showed that the worldwide B. pertussis population has evolved in the last 60 years,. Gene categories under selection were identified underlying that Bvg-activated genes and genes coding for surface-exposed proteins were important for adaptation. However these analyses concerned only overall vaccine antigen producing isolates.   The PTMMH Unit includes the National Center of reference for Bordetellosis. In the last years some particular B.pertussis French isolates no more producing PRN but also FHA or PT have been collected, analyzed and sequenced. We would like to further analyze these genomic data with a focus on the vaccine antigen deficient isolates through a SNP-based comparison of these isolates vs co-circulating isolates producing all vaccine antigens and vs a reference strain.