Herpes Simplex Virus-Specific CD8+ T Cells Can Clear Established Lytic Infections from Skin and Nerves and Can Partially Limit the Early Spread of Virus after Cutaneous Inoculation

• Published in: The Journal of immunology (1950) 2004-01, Vol.172 (1), p.392-397
• Main Authors: van Lint, Allison, Ayers, Margaret, Brooks, Andrew G, Coles, Richard M, Heath, William R, Carbone, Francis R
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Administration, Cutaneous; Adoptive Transfer; Animals; CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes - immunology; CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes - transplantation; CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes - virology; Disease Progression; Epitopes, T-Lymphocyte - immunology; Female; Ganglia, Spinal - immunology; Ganglia, Spinal - pathology; Ganglia, Spinal - virology; Herpes Simplex - immunology; Herpes Simplex - pathology; Herpes Simplex - prevention & control; Herpesvirus 1, Human - growth & development; Herpesvirus 1, Human - immunology; Hindlimb; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Mice, Knockout; Mice, Transgenic; Peripheral Nervous System Diseases - immunology; Peripheral Nervous System Diseases - pathology; Peripheral Nervous System Diseases - prevention & control; Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell - genetics; Skin Diseases, Viral - immunology; Skin Diseases, Viral - pathology; Skin Diseases, Viral - prevention & control; Viral Envelope Proteins - immunology; Virus Replication - immunology
• ISSN: 0022-1767; 1550-6606
• DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.172.1.392

HSV infects skin or mucosal epithelium as well as entering the sensory nerves and ganglia. We have used TCR-transgenic T cells specific for the immunodominant class I-restricted determinant from HSV glycoprotein B (gB) combined with a flank zosteriform model of infection to examine the ability of CD8+ T cells to deal with infection. During the course of zosteriform disease, virus rapidly spreads from the primary inoculation site in the skin to sensory dorsal root ganglia and subsequently reappears in the distal flank. Virus begins to be cleared from all sites about 5 days after infection when gB-specific CD8+ T cells first appear within infected tissues. Although activated gB-specific effectors can partially limit virus egress from the skin, they do so only at the earliest times after infection and are ineffective at halting the progression of zosteriform disease once virus has left the inoculation site. In contrast, these same T cells can completely clear ongoing lytic replication if transferred into infected immunocompromised RAG-1-/- mice. Therefore, we propose that the role of CD8+ T cells during the normal course of disease is to clear replicating virus after infection is well established rather than limit the initial spread of HSV from the primary site of inoculation.