Erythroid Suppressor Cells Compromise Neonatal Immune Response against Bordetella pertussis

Newborns are highly susceptible to infection. The underlying mechanism of neonatal infection susceptibility has generally been associated with neonatal immune cell immaturity. In this study, we challenged this notion and built upon our recent discovery that neonates are physiologically enriched with erythroid TER119+CD71+ cells (Elahi et al. 2013. Nature 504: 158–162). We have used Bordetella pertussis, a common neonatal respiratory tract...