Thus, advances in the knowledge of the role of NO in immunomodulation and in the pathogenesis of viral diseases could contribute not only to the development of vaccines and therapeutic strategies but also to the use of its metabolites (nitrate/nitrite) and the enzyme responsible for its production (iNOS) as prognostic markers of some of these viral infections.

25Pertussis resurgence worldwide calls for new prevention strategies, as the recently 26 incorporated vaccine booster dose during pregnancy, whose aim is to protect newborns 27 from infection. In Brazil, maternal Tdap vaccination is recommended since 2014, and we 28 reported that this strategy promotes high transplacental transfer of anti-PT IgG and it is 29 effective in protecting infants early in life. Young children are the most susceptible group 30 and with higher mortality rates, however, it is not well known whether the elicited anti-31 pertussis maternal antibodies could influence in the children's immune responses further 32 in life, especially after their own vaccination against pertussis. Considering this scenario, 33 we conducted a study with children born to mothers who either received or not the booster 34 dose during pregnancy, after their primary pertussis vaccination, in order to investigate 35 the first impact of maternal immunisation on the response to infant immunisation 36 regarding the cellular immune response, while comparing with data from the literature. 37As transfer of maternal antibodies could result in attenuation of the immune response to 38 vaccination in infants, this study performed to determine whether higher levels of 39 maternal antibodies could influence in the immune response of infants to the whole-40 pertussis vaccination series. Results showed no difference in cytokine production 41 between groups, a first suggestion that maternal vaccination may not interfere with 42 recognition and cellular response generation to vaccination. This data, together with 43 humoral immunity and epidemiological studies, is important for the implementation of 44 maternal immunisation strategies nationwide and will contribute to assure public policies 45 regarding vaccination schemes. 46 47 Importance: Pertussis, or whopping cough, is a respiratory infectious disease caused by 48 a bacterial agent, resulting in violent coughs and possibly death in vulnerable groups, 49 3 such as young children and neonates. It is known that pregnant mothers transfer 50 antibodies to their developing foetuses for protection in early life, however anti-pertussis 51 antibodies are not highly detected in young children. Thus, a pertussis maternal 52 vaccination was implemented to increase maternal anti-pertussis antibodies levels in 53 pregnant women and therefore the transference to the foetus. However, maternal 54 antibodies can also interfere in the child immune response in the first months of life. The 55 significance of our research is in analysing the cellular immune response of children born 56 from pertussis-vaccinated mothers, which will give a first glimpse on how maternal 57 antibodies could modulate the child's response to pertussis in early life. 58 59 Introduction 60 Pertussis is a contagious respiratory disease caused by the Bordetella pertussis bacteria 61 [1]. Despite high vaccination coverage, it remains an important public health problem, re-62 emerging in several countries every several yea...

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