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Herpesvirus Infections (herpesviru + infections)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Medical Sciences	57%

Selected Abstracts

Control of murine gammaherpesvirus infection is independent of NK cells

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY, Issue 10 2005
Edward
Abstract Numerous studies have shown that NK cells are important in controlling the early stages of infection with alpha- or betaherpesviruses. In contrast, little is known about the impact of NK cells on gammaherpesvirus infections. We tested mice with defects in NK cells for their ability to resist murine gammaherpesvirus (MHV-68) infection. The depletion of NK cells had no effect on the control of the acute or latent stages of the infection. In addition, transgenic mice deficient in NK cells controlled the infection in a comparable manner to wild-type mice. We also showed that the antiviral CD8 T,cell response was unaffected by the presence or absence NK cells. We conclude that NK cells contribute little to the control of MHV-68 infection, and therefore, NK cells are not essential for controlling all herpesvirus infections. [source]

Effect of multiple herpesvirus infections on the progression of HIV disease in a cohort of HIV seroconverters,

JOURNAL OF MEDICAL VIROLOGY, Issue 2 2003
Barbara Suligoi
Abstract The effects of herpesviruses infection on the progression of HIV disease remain controversial, with some studies showing accelerated progression and others showing no effect. Furthermore, the effect of concurrent infection with more than one herpesvirus on the progression of HIV disease has never been investigated. To this end, the rates of progression of HIV disease were determined after stratifying for the presence of up to five different herpesvirus infections. The study population consisted of 359 HIV-infected persons for whom the date of seroconversion was estimated (part of the Italian Seroconversion Study). One serum sample from each participant was tested for antibodies to five herpesviruses: HSV-2, CMV, HHV-6, HHV-7, and HHV-8. Univariate analysis showed that HSV-2 and HHV-8 were significantly associated with progression to AIDS, yet when adjusting for age at HIV seroconversion and for the presence of the other herpesvirus infections, only HHV-8 infection showed a significant association. The age-adjusted risk of progression to AIDS with Kaposi's sarcoma increased with the number of herpesvirus infections and was significant in individuals with four infections. The risk of progression to AIDS without Kaposi's sarcoma also increased with the number of infections, although not significantly. Similar results were found when considering CD4+ cell count <200,×,106 cells/L as the endpoint. Concurrent infection with more than one herpesvirus does not appear to have a significant effect on the course of HIV disease, except for the known association between HHV-8 and Kaposi's sarcoma. However, even after excluding Kaposi's sarcoma from the AIDS-defining endpoints, a slightly increased risk for participants with four herpesvirus infections remained. J. Med. Virol. 69:182,187, 2003. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]

Herpesviruses in human periodontal disease

JOURNAL OF PERIODONTAL RESEARCH, Issue 1 2000
Adolfo Contreras
Recent studies have identified various herpesviruses in human periodontal disease. Epstein,Barr virus type 1 (EBV-1) infects periodontal B-lymphocytes and human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infects periodontal monocytes/macrophages and T-lymphocytes. EBV-1, HCMV and other herpesviruses are present more frequently in periodontitis lesions and acute necrotizing ulcerative gingivitis-lesions than in gingivitis or periodontally healthy sites. Reactivation of HCMV in periodontitis lesions tends to be associated with progressing periodontal disease. Herpesvirus-associated periodontitis lesions harbor elevated levels of periodontopathic bacteria, including Acrinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Bacteriodes forsythus, Prevotella intermedia, Prevotella nigrescens and Treponema denticola. It may be that active periodontal herpesvirus infection impairs periodontal defenses, thereby permitting subgingival overgrowth of periodontopathic bacteria. Alteration between latent and active herpesvirus infection in the periodontium might lead to transient local immunosuppression and explain in part the episodic progressive nature of human periodontitis. Tissue tropism of herpesvirus infections might help explain the localized pattern of tissue destruction in periodontitis. Absence of herpesvirus infection or viral reactivation might explain why some individuals carry periodontopathic bacteria while still maintaining periodontal health. Further studies are warranted to delineate whether the proposed herpesvirus-periodontopathic bacteria model might account for some of the pathogenic features of human periodontal disease. [source]

Mechanisms of expression of HHV8, EBV and HPV in selected HIV-associated oral lesions

ORAL DISEASES, Issue 2002
JJ Hille
Opportunistic DNA viruses, particularly members of the herpesvirus family, are frequently the aetiological agents of HIV-associated oral lesions. Oral lesions common to the early phase of the AIDS epidemic, including Kaposi's sarcoma (KS), oral aphthous ulceration, AIDS-associated oral lymphoma, and oral hairy leukoplakia (OHL), have been tested for the prevalence of Epstein,Barr virus (EBV) and Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV). While EBV DNA is detected by PCR in all of these lesions, abundant viral replication can only be detected in OHL. In OHL, a novel state of EBV infection has been discovered with concurrent expression of replicative and transforming proteins, with all of these proteins contributing to the development of the lesion. Activation of signalling pathways and up-regulation of the viral receptor, proliferative and antiapoptotic genes by these proteins induce several of the histological features common to OHL, such as acanthosis and hyperproliferation. In contrast to other permissive herpesvirus infections, expression of EBV transforming proteins within the permissively infected OHL tissue enables epithelial cell survival and may enhance viral replication. Detection of KSHV in these HIV-infected individuals has been localized only to their saliva. Replicative and latent KSHV gene products have been detected in association with the development of oral KS lesions. EBV, but not human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), has been detected by PCR in minor salivary gland biopsies of HIV-associated salivary gland disease. Human papillomaviruses (HPV) are associated with oral warts in HIV-positive individuals; a diagnosis that appears to be increasing in frequency in the era of highly active antiretroviral therapy. To date, there appears to be little increase in the incidence of HPV-associated oral cancer. The mechanisms of interaction between HIV and HPV are not fully understood. Expression of viral gene products is clearly important and necessary for the development of multiple AIDS-associated oral lesions. [source]

Antiviral prodrugs , the development of successful prodrug strategies for antiviral chemotherapy

BRITISH JOURNAL OF PHARMACOLOGY, Issue 1 2006
Erik De Clercq
Following the discovery of the first effective antiviral compound (idoxuridine) in 1959, nucleoside analogues, especially acyclovir (ACV) for the treatment of herpesvirus infections, have dominated antiviral therapy for several decades. However, ACV and similar acyclic nucleosides suffer from low aqueous solubility and low bioavailability following oral administration. Derivatives of acyclic nucleosides, typically esters, were developed to overcome this problem and valaciclovir, the valine ester of ACV, was among the first of a new series of compounds that were readily metabolized upon oral administration to produce the antiviral nucleoside in vivo, thus increasing the bioavailility by several fold. Concurrently, famciclovir was developed as an oral formulation of penciclovir. These antiviral ,prodrugs' thus established a principle that has led to many successful drugs including both nucleoside and nucleotide analogues for the control of several virus infections, notably those caused by herpes-, retro- and hepatitisviruses. This review will chart the origins and development of the most important of the antiviral prodrugs to date. British Journal of Pharmacology (2006) 147, 1,11. doi:10.1038/sj.bjp.0706446 [source]