Prevalence and genetic characterization of pertactin-deficient Bordetella pertussis in Japan.

ABSTRACT: The adhesin pertactin (Prn) is one of the major virulence factors of Bordetella pertussis, the etiological agent of whooping cough. However, a significant prevalence of Prn-deficient (Prn(-)) B. pertussis was observed in Japan. The Prn(-) isolate was first discovered in 1997, and 33 (27%) Prn(-) isolates were identified among 121 B. pertussis isolates collected from 1990 to 2009. Sequence analysis revealed that all the Prn(-) isolates harbor exclusively the vaccine-type prn1 allele and that loss of Prn expression is caused by 2 different mutations: an 84-bp deletion of the prn signal sequence (prn1ΔSS, n = 24) and an IS481 insertion in prn1 (prn1::IS481, n = 9). The frequency of Prn(-) isolates, notably those harboring prn1ΔSS, significantly increased since the early 2000s, and Prn(-) isol

SUBMITTER: Otsuka N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3279416 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature