Genomic characterization of the Bordetella pertussis strain used to produce the anti-pertussis vaccine at Butantan Institute

• Grant number: 12/10642-7
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: October 01, 2012
• End date: September 30, 2015
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Biochemistry - Molecular Biology
• Principal Investigator: Enéas de Carvalho
• Grantee: Enéas de Carvalho
• Host Institution: Instituto Butantan. Secretaria da Saúde (São Paulo - Estado). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated researchers: Inácio de Loiola Meirelles Junqueira de Azevedo ; Joao Paulo Fumio Whitaker Kitajima ; Milena Apetito Akamatsu ; Paulo Lee Ho

Abstract

Whooping cough (also known as pertussis) is an acute infectious disease that affects the human respiratory tract, caused by the bacteria Bordetella pertussis. Having a significant epidemiological impact in the past, this disease has undergone a notable reduction in case numbers and mortality rates after the widespread use of anti-pertussis vaccines. However, whooping cough challenges this current scenario of a vaccinated environment, persisting with a significant epidemiological impact, which is considerably aggravated by a recent increase in cases of this disease, a worldwide phenomenon which is still being studied and has not yet a clear explanation until now. Our proposal is to perform the genomic sequencing of the Bordetella pertussis strain used for production of the anti-pertussis vaccine at Butantan Institute (which is administered to the whole Brazilian population), using pyrosequencing technology. Although most cellular pertussis vaccines are produced using 2-3 bacterial strains, to ensure a proper immune-coverage against the most frequent circulating strains, Brazil uses a single strain for the production of its vaccine, ensuring, nevertheless, an effective immune-coverage. This fact highlights the importance of the complete genome sequencing the vaccine strain. Indeed, this information may be of great importance to understand the vaccinal potential of this strain, the emergence of epidemiological outbreaks of the disease not covered by vaccination with the current used strain, among other biotechnological and microbiological reasons. It is also worth mentioning that this bacterial strain is used to produce a potent vaccine adjuvant (monophosphoryl lipid A). Furthermore, the precise genomic characterization of the bacteria used for the vaccine production could represent the beginning of a movement of genomic sequencing and characterization of the strains used for the production of biological products in Brazil. Thus, this project aims to answer interesting scientific questions and anticipate important demands in understanding the epidemiological control by vaccination and the quality control in vaccine production. (AU)