Bordetella holmesii
The test designed to detect Bordetella holmesii DNA in human biomaterial and bacterial cultures by real-time PCR.Category «Respiratory tract infections»
Characteristics of Bordetella holmesii
Bordetella holmesii is a Gram-negative bacterium first isolated in 1995. In healthy individuals, it causes a pertussis-like syndrome characterized by spasmodic cough and shortness of breath, typically in a milder form. The main source of infection is an infected person, and the primary mode of transmission is airborne. Transmission of Bordetella holmesii may occur either as a co-infection with B. pertussis or independently. The bacterium spreads through coughing, sneezing, and speaking. The ciliated epithelium of the nasopharynx serves as the portal of entry, where the pathogen attaches and multiplies, leading to the development of a respiratory form of infection (without bloodstream invasion). The role of contact-household and fecal–oral transmission routes has not been confirmed. The incubation period is estimated to be 7–14 days.
Bordetella holmesii virulence factors
- A protein similar to filamentous hemagglutinin (FHA), an essential adhesin for colonization in other pathogenic Bordetella species.
- Outer membrane lipopolysaccharide, which contributes to the ability to cause bacteremia.
- Iron acquisition systems that promote survival of the pathogen within the host.
- Efflux pumps involved in mechanisms of antibiotic resistance.
Although Bordetella holmesii does not produce pertussis toxin or several other virulence factors typical of most Bordetella species, its own set of factors supports colonization of the respiratory tract.
Infection with Bordetella holmesii presents with classic pertussis symptoms in about 50% of patients, but without development of respiratory failure. In cases of co-infection with B. pertussis, the disease course is more severe due to the action of pertussis toxin produced by that species.
Respiratory infection associated with Bordetella holmesii is often misidentified as pertussis caused by B. pertussis. Diagnostic challenges arise due to the close genetic similarity between these two species.
PCR tests enable detection of specific DNA sequences of Bordetella holmesii with high diagnostic accuracy in nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal swabs, as well as in bacterial cultures.
Indications for the test
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Diagnosis of pertussis-like diseases caused by Bordetella holmesii; -
Differential diagnosis of infections caused by Bordetella species; -
Examination of patients with mild or atypical clinical presentations; -
Epidemiological monitoring.
Bordetella holmesii
The Bordetella holmesii REAL-TIME PCR Detection Kit is an in vitro Nucleic Acid Test (NAT) – pathogen-detection-based product.
Sample: Smears from nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal mucous membranes, bacterial cultures
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