Highlights of the 14th International Bordetella Symposium

Kevin Munoz Navarrete¹, Kathryn M Edwards², Kingston H G Mills³, Jana Kamanová¹, María Eugenia Rodriguez⁴, Andrew Gorringe⁵, Andrew Preston⁶, Beate Kampmann^{7

8}, Monica C Gestal⁹, Eric T Harvill¹⁰, Purnima Dubey¹¹, Dimitri A Diavatopoulos¹², Seema Mattoo¹³, Karen M Scanlon¹⁴, Camille Locht¹⁵, Peter Sebo¹

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Microbiology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czechia.
² Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee, USA.
³ School of Biochemistry and Immunology, Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Leinster, Ireland.
⁴ CINDEFI (UNLP, CONICET La Plata), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina.
⁵ UK Health Security Agency, Porton Down, Salisbury, United Kingdom.
⁶ The Milner Centre for Evolution and Department of Life Sciences, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom.
⁷ Clinical Research, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom.
⁸ Institute of International Health, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
⁹ Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center at Shreveport, Shreveport, Louisiana, USA.
¹⁰ Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine, Athens, Georgia, USA.
¹¹ Department of Microbial Infection and Immunity, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA.
¹² Laboratory of Medical Immunology, Radboud Community of Infectious Diseases, Radboud Institute for Molecular Life Sciences, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, Gelderland, Netherlands.
¹³ Departments of Biological Sciences and Biochemistry, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA.
¹⁴ Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
¹⁵ Université Lille, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Inserm, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1019 Unité Mixte de Recherche 8204, Center for Infection and Immunity of Lille, Lille, France.

PMID: 40377335
PMCID: PMC12188742
DOI: 10.1128/msphere.00189-25

Review

Highlights of the 14th International Bordetella Symposium

Kevin Munoz Navarrete et al. mSphere. 2025.

. 2025 Jun 25;10(6):e0018925.

doi: 10.1128/msphere.00189-25. Epub 2025 May 16.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Microbiology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czechia.
² Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee, USA.
³ School of Biochemistry and Immunology, Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Leinster, Ireland.
⁴ CINDEFI (UNLP, CONICET La Plata), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina.
⁵ UK Health Security Agency, Porton Down, Salisbury, United Kingdom.
⁶ The Milner Centre for Evolution and Department of Life Sciences, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom.
⁷ Clinical Research, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom.
⁸ Institute of International Health, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
⁹ Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center at Shreveport, Shreveport, Louisiana, USA.
¹⁰ Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine, Athens, Georgia, USA.
¹¹ Department of Microbial Infection and Immunity, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA.
¹² Laboratory of Medical Immunology, Radboud Community of Infectious Diseases, Radboud Institute for Molecular Life Sciences, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, Gelderland, Netherlands.
¹³ Departments of Biological Sciences and Biochemistry, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA.
¹⁴ Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
¹⁵ Université Lille, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Inserm, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Lille, Institut Pasteur de Lille, U1019 Unité Mixte de Recherche 8204, Center for Infection and Immunity of Lille, Lille, France.

PMID: 40377335
PMCID: PMC12188742
DOI: 10.1128/msphere.00189-25

Abstract

Pertussis, or whooping cough, is a highly contagious and acute respiratory illness caused primarily by the gram-negative coccobacillus Bordetella pertussis. Despite near-universal vaccination, pertussis remains one of the least-controlled vaccine-preventable infectious diseases. Since 2023, pertussis incidence has been rising, and widespread pertussis outbreaks have resurged in many countries. In response to these emerging challenges, almost 300 experts from institutions across 24 countries convened at the 14th International Bordetella Symposium in Prague, Czech Republic, from 24 to 28 June 2024 to discuss pertussis epidemiology and research and strategies to mitigate the global pertussis burden. We present here the highlights of the symposium, comprising epidemiological and clinical aspects of Bordetella infections, results of clinical trials of pertussis vaccination in pregnant women and effectiveness of maternal vaccination in protecting newborn infants in Africa and Europe, the controlled human infection model (CHIM), and the latest insights into the biology, immunology, and pathogenesis of B. pertussis infection.

Keywords: Bordetella pertussis; epidemiology; pathogenesis; toxins; vaccines; virulence.

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Conflict of interest statement

D.A.D. through Radboud UMC received funding from industry for pertussis vaccine studies and analysis of vaccine-induced immunity. K.M.E. consulted for Dynavax and AstraZeneca and served as a member of the Data Safety and Monitoring Board for Sanofi, X-4 Pharma, Seqirus, Moderna, Pfizer, Merck, Roche, Novavax, and Brighton Collaboration. A.G. serves as a consultant for CARB-X on vaccines for AMR pathogens. B.K. has received institutional funding for vaccine studies from UKRI, Wellcome Trust, BMGF, Pfizer, NIH, and EU/IMI. She has participated in scientific advisory boards for Pfizer, GSK, Sanofi, and Johnson & Johnson. C.L. is the co-inventor of BPZE1, and his employer holds a patent folio on the technology, currently licensed to ILiAD Biotechnologies. He also reports consulting fees from and holds equity in ILiAD Biotechnologies. K.H.G.M. is an inventor on patent applications around pertussis vaccines and has received research funding and acted as a consultant for vaccine manufacturers. A.P. received funding from companies that develop pertussis vaccines. P.S. is the founder and shareholder of Revabiotech SE, which develops a next generation of whole-cell pertussis vaccine, and consulted for vaccine manufacturers.

References

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Highlights of the 14th International Bordetella Symposium

Affiliations

Highlights of the 14th International Bordetella Symposium

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Abstract

Conflict of interest statement

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