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Reasons for the recent resurgence of pertussis include parental hesitancy to vaccinate and waning vaccine immunity. Emergence of mutated pertussis bacterial strains has been suggested as an explanation for an increase in pertussis in vaccinated patients. Strains that lack pertactin, a protein thought to have a role in bacterial attachment, have been reported around the world. The currently licensed acellular pertussis vaccines all contain pertactin, and pertactin-deficient mutants may more efficiently infect immunized individuals and contribute to the continued spread of disease.
Researchers screened Bordetella pertussis isolates from 753 patients in eight states between 2011 and 2013 to identify mutations associated with pertactin deficienc…