Latency of herpes simplex virus type-1 in human geniculate and vestibular ganglia is associated with infiltration of CD8+ T cells

✍ Scribed by Viktor Arbusow; Tobias Derfuss; Kathrin Held; Susanne Himmelein; Michael Strupp; Robert Gurkov; Thomas Brandt; Diethilde Theil

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2010
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 61 KB
• Volume: 82
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0146-6615
• DOI: 10.1002/jmv.21904

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

Herpes simplex virus type‐1 latency and CD8+ T‐cell occurrence were investigated in the trigeminal, geniculate, and vestibular ganglia from seven deceased humans. The HSV‐1 “latency‐associated transcript” was assessed by in situ hybridization and quantitative RT‐PCR. Infiltration of CD8+ T cell was detected by immunohistochemistry and quantitative RT‐PCR. The data show that HSV‐1 latency and CD8+ T‐cell infiltration are not solely confined to the trigeminal ganglia but can also occur in other cranial ganglia along the neuroaxis. However, the HSV‐1 latency transcripts in the geniculate and vestibular ganglia were expressed at a very low level. The difference in CD8 transcript levels among HSV‐1 latently infected trigeminal ganglia, geniculate, and vestibular ganglia was less conspicuous. Colocalization of latent HSV‐1 and CD8+ T cells in geniculate and vestibular ganglia supports further the hypothesis that HSV‐1 reactivation is possible in these ganglia and is the cause of Bell's palsy and vestibular neuritis. J. Med. Virol. 82:1917–1920, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.