A cultured affair: HSV latency and reactivation in neurons

• Published in: Trends in microbiology (Regular ed.) Vol. 20; no. 12; pp. 604 - 611
• Main Authors: Wilson, Angus C, Mohr, Ian
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.12.2012
• Subjects: animal models; Animals; epigenetic control; epithelium; genome; herpes simplex; herpes simplex virus; Herpes simplex virus 1; Herpesvirus 1, Human - pathogenicity; Herpesvirus 1, Human - physiology; homeostasis; Human herpesvirus 1; Humans; Internal Medicine; nerve growth factor; neuronal signaling; neurons; Neurons - virology; reactivation; viral latency; Virus Activation; Virus Latency; viruses; herpes simplex virus; reactivation; viral latency; epigenetic control; neuronal signaling; nerve growth factor
• ISSN: 0966-842X; 1878-4380
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2012.08.005

After replicating in surface epithelia, herpes simplex virus type-1 (HSV-1) enters the axonal terminals of peripheral neurons. The viral genome translocates to the nucleus, where it establishes a specialized infection known as latency, re-emerging periodically to seed new infections. Studies using cultured neuron models that faithfully recapitulate the molecular hallmarks of latency and reactivation defined in live animal models have provided fresh insight into the control of latency and connections to neuronal physiology. With this comes a growing appreciation for how the life cycles of HSV-1 and other herpesviruses are governed by key host pathways controlling metabolic homeostasis and cell identity.