BACKGROUND Seroepidemiologic studies indicate a high prevalence of herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection. This infection leads to ophthalmic, dermatologic, oral, neurologic, vaginal and cervical problems. Different studies have been carried out to estimate the HSV seroprevalence in Iran. Combining the results of these studies would be useful for health policy-making. OBJECTIVE This study aims ...

Virion assembly represents an elaborate molecular jigsaw, coordinating numerous individual components to construct an infectious agent. For enveloped viruses, such as HIV, influenza and Herpes Simplex Virus-1 (HSV1), a vital piece of this puzzle is the acquisition of a membrane. Unlike viral proteins, this is not produced de novo, but derived directly from existing host membranes. The host’s se...

PURPOSE Oncolytic viruses (OV) based on herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV1) are being used in clinical trials for a variety of cancers. The OV, rQNestin34.5, uses a nestin promoter/enhancer to selectively drive robust viral replication in malignant glioma cells. We have discovered that this promoter becomes extensively methylated in infected glioma cells, reducing OV efficacy. EXPERIMENTAL DES...

Repeated administration of gene therapies is hampered by host immunity toward vectors and transgenes. Attempts to circumvent antivector immunity include pharmacological immunosuppression or alternating different vectors and vector serotypes with the same transgene. Our studies show that B-cell depletion with anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody and concomitant T-cell inhibition with clinically availab...

Histiocytic necrotizing lymphadenitis (HNL) or Kikuchi's disease is a distinctive, self-limited disorder characterized by necrotizing cervical lymphadenopathy in young individuals. HNL is more prevalent among Asians and is a relatively common disorder among Koreans. A preceding fever, lymphopenia, and occasional skin rashes suggest a viral etiology and there have been sporadic reports of viral ...

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a common malignant carcinoma worldwide and the third leading cause of cancer mortality. However, current treatment strategies are not potent enough to combat this disease. Therefore, identification of novel and more effective treatments is crucial. Of the current methods, gene therapy, which targets cancer‐specific expression and limits toxicity, is a new strat...

Protein microarrays have been developed to study antibody reactivity against a large number of antigens, demonstrating extensive perspective for clinical application. We developed a viral antigen array by spotting four recombinant antigens and synthetic peptide, including glycoprotein G of herpes simplex virus (HSV) type 1 and 2, phosphoprotein 150 of cytomegalovirus (CMV), Rubella virus (RV) c...

A survey to identify the aetiology of hearing impairment among Saudi children was carried out. Children were divided into two groups according to presence or absence of laboratory evidence of herpes simplex virus infection 'at risk' and 'not at risk'. Serological tests for herpes simplex virus infection were performed on 1054 children. We found positive IgM antibody against herpes simplex virus...

A transgenic mouse line (Oligo-TTK) was established to monitor oligodendrocyte cell death and myelin formation in the CNS. The expression of a conditionally toxic gene, the herpes simplex virus-1 thymidine kinase (HSV1-TK), was made under control of the MBP (myelin basic protein) gene promoter. A truncated form of the HSV1-TK (TTK) gene was used to avoid both bystander effect resulting from lea...

When employed as a transgene reporter, the herpes simplex type 1 virus (HSV1) thymidine kinase gene (tk) is ectopically expressed in mouse testis. The principal testicular mRNA lacks the 5'-end of the tk reading frame. As a result the principal translation products, P2 and P3, are N-terminally truncated. These co-migrate in SDS-PAGE with polypeptides synthesised during HSV1 infection that were ...