Herpesvirus in sensory and autonomic ganglia after eye infection
R. G. Martin, C. R. Dawson, P. Jones, B. Togni, C. Lyons and J. O. Oh
In herpesvirus hominis (HVH) infections, virus harbored in the sensory
ganglia is now thought to be the main source of recurrent infection at
peripheral sites. Experimental HVH infection of the external eye in rabbits
produces an acute infection and then latent infection of the trigeminal
ganglion. In this study, acute infection of the automatic ganglia serving
the eye (superior cervical and ciliary) as well as trigeminal ganglia
occurred after HVH inoculation of rabbits' corneas with a herpes type 1
strain (RE). Latent virus infection was detected in the trigeminal ganglion
of one of five animals tested six months after initial infection. Since the
superior cervical and other autonomic ganglia serving the eye become
infected during acute herpes simplex virus infection of the external eye in
rabbits, it is possible that these ganglia are also sources of reinfection
in recurrent herpetic disease of the eye. Following the initial eye disease
with this virus strain, HVH shedding could not be demonstrated even after
induction attempts by topically applied epinephrine or systemic use of
cyclophosphamide. Thus, establishment of latent HVH infection in the
ganglia and chronic shedding of virus into the external eye is not a
constant feature of this animal model, but may depend on the specific
strain of herpesvirus used.
