Bordetella pathogenesis

Numerous studies have been undertaken, the last fifteen years, in order to characterize and study the role of factors involved in Bordetella pathogenesis. These studies have been carried out using molecular biology and cellular biology techniques and a murine respiratory model. It has been shown that : i) many factors are necessary for Bordetella species to initiate infection, to colonize the host respiratory tract and to multiply : adhesins (filamentous hemagglutinin, pertactin and agglutinogens) and toxins (pertussis toxin, tracheal cytotoxin and adenylate cyclase-hemolysin); ii) Bordetella species, which have been considered as extracellular bacteria, could in fact, persist inside host cells; iii) the expression of Bordetella virulence factors could vary during infection, allowing the bacteria to escape the host immune response.