Antibody Profiles Elicited by Potent and Subpotent Whole Cell Pertussis Vaccines in Mice

Inactivated, whole cell pertussis (wP) vaccines remain at the frontline in the global fight against the resurgence of whooping cough, especially in low- and middle-income countries. However, the reliance on the intracerebral mouse potency test (ic-MPT or Kendrick assay) as the standard batch release assay is challenging for the production of commercial wP vaccines. The ic-MPT is technically challenging, labor intensive and, arguably, incongruous with modern animal welfare guidelines. Replacing the ic-MPT with a whole cell Bordetella pertussis ELISA, the so-called pertussis serology potency test (PSPT), has shown promise, but has been difficult to implement in practice. In this report, we tested the hypothesis that potent and subpotent wP vaccines have distinct serologic profiles in mice that could be developed as a substitute for the ic-MPT. We first established an accelerated decay (thermal stress) protocol in which wP, in the context of DTwP, was rendered > 10-fold less effective than unstressed vaccine when evaluated in a mouse model of B. pertussis lung clearance following intranasal challenge. We then screened immune sera on a limited B. pertussis Tahoma I proteome array and identified >30 antigens whose antibody reactivity profiles increased, decreased or were unchanged as a function of wP potency. Interestingly, virtually all the “indicator” antigens identified are known virulence factors or reactive with human convalescent sera, thereby establishing a potential link between wP potency and pertussis infection and immunity. These results bode well for the development of a limited B. pertussis antigen array as a stability-indicating surrogate potency assay for the ic-MPT.