Limited response of primary nasal epithelial cells to Bordetella pertussis infection and the effector protein BteA

Bordetella pertussis is a Gram-negative coccobacillus that causes whooping cough or pertussis, a respiratory disease that has recently experienced a resurgence. Upon entering the respiratory tract, B. pertussis colonizes the airway epithelium and attaches to ciliated cells. Here, we used primary human nasal epithelial cells (hNECs) cultured at the air-liquid interface, and investigated their transcriptomic response after infection with the B. pertussis B1917. We also analyzed role of the type III secretion system effector protein BteA in modulating this response. RNA-seq analysis was performed on primary human nasal epithelial cells (hNECs) cultured at air-liquid interface. The transcriptomic response of the cells was assessed following 24-hour infection with Bordetella pertussis B1917 wild type, a BteA deletion mutant, and a BteA-complemented strain, with three biological replicates per condition.