Forget About Bordetella Pertussis, India Experiencing a Surge of Respiratory Infections Caused by Bordetella Holmesii
Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team Oct 31, 2025 11 hours, 13 minutes ago
Medical News: A shocking new development in Northern India’s respiratory disease landscape has emerged, with researchers warning that the lesser-known bacterium Bordetella holmesii is rapidly replacing Bordetella pertussis—the long-feared cause of whooping cough—as a leading cause of severe chest infections.
Forget About Bordetella Pertussis, India Experiencing a Surge of Respiratory Infections Caused by Bordetella Holmesii
The discovery, made by scientists from the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh, in collaboration with the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research–Institute of Microbial Technology (CSIR–IMTECH), Chandigarh, signals a silent epidemic that could worsen by 2025 if unaddressed. In this
Medical News report, experts say the situation has evolved beyond what the 2019–2023 study period captured, as recent cases indicate continued and possibly accelerating transmission of B. holmesii infections. Some experts also believe that new B. holmesii strains have emerged and are possibly behind this new surges and warn that these strains could spread to elsewhere around the world if nothing is done fast.
A Five-Year Study That Exposed a Hidden Threat
Between January 2019 and August 2023, PGIMER researchers analyzed 935 samples from patients suffering from persistent cough and respiratory distress—symptoms commonly associated with whooping cough. Using advanced molecular tools such as real-time PCR, the team identified that almost half of the samples contained genetic traces of Bordetella bacteria. However, instead of the expected Bordetella pertussis, the culprit in most cases turned out to be Bordetella holmesii, a pathogen once considered rare in humans.
The study revealed that 37.3% of confirmed infections were due solely to B. holmesii, while only 13.6% were caused by B. pertussis. Alarmingly, by the last year of the study, B. holmesii infections had surpassed B. pertussis across several northern states. Pediatric cases—especially among children aged 5 to 10—showed the steepest rise, suggesting that this strain might be exploiting immunity gaps left by the traditional whooping cough vaccine.
The Key Differences Between Bordetella Holmesii and Bordetella Pertussis
Bordetella pertussis is the well-known bacteria responsible for whooping cough, a highly contagious infection marked by violent coughing fits followed by a “whooping” sound as patients struggle to inhale. This bacterium has been the target of global vaccination programs for decades.
Bordetella holmesii, on the other hand, is a stealthier cousin. It causes nearly identical symptoms—chronic cough, fever, and chest congestion—but it is not covered by standard pertussis vaccines and often goes undetected in diagnostic tests designed for B. pertussis. Genetically, B. holmesii lacks several hallmark proteins such as p
ertactin and fimbriae, meaning that the antibodies generated by whooping cough vaccines do not neutralize it effectively. As a result, vaccinated individuals may still fall ill, unaware that a different bacterium is at play.
There are also claims that infections caused by Bordetella holmesii can lead to serious long-term health effects including persistent chronic inflammations, lung fibrosis and lung cancer.
A Growing Concern in 2025
Though the PGIMER study officially covered cases up to mid-2023, infectious disease experts now fear that B. holmesii infections have continued to escalate in 2024 and 2025. Recent clinical observations from hospitals across Chandigarh, Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh indicate a worrying trend—more children and adults presenting with persistent coughs that test negative for B. pertussis yet show molecular markers consistent with B. holmesii. Physicians warn that this pathogen could be silently spreading, evading standard testing, and causing underreported outbreaks.
This surge also poses a public health dilemma: since B. holmesii infections are not part of routine surveillance, many are misclassified as whooping cough. Without targeted monitoring, containment efforts remain incomplete, and patients may not receive optimal treatment. Experts stress that molecular diagnostic tools capable of distinguishing between Bordetella species must be deployed across diagnostic labs to prevent future epidemics.
A Silent but Serious Shift
The rise of Bordetella holmesii underscores how respiratory pathogens can evolve and exploit gaps in existing vaccines. The researchers behind the PGIMER study emphasize that unless urgent steps are taken to recognize and track B. holmesii, northern India could face recurrent waves of respiratory illness among both children and adults in the coming years. Their findings highlight the need for new vaccine formulations, expanded testing, and more aggressive disease surveillance.
The study findings were published in the peer reviewed journal: Emerging Infectious Diseases.
https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/31/10/24-1659_article
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