While it typically causes minor issues, Herpes Simplex Virus 1 (HSV-1) can cause encephalitis, blindness and even death in neonates and the immunocompromised. To better understand the immune response to HSV-1, Lucinda et al. studied cytokine and cell responses to HSV-1 infection in trigeminal ganglia with wild type and TLR2/9-/- mice. TLR2 and 9 have been heavily implicated in generating a strong immune response to contain HSV-1. The absence of these TLRs results in death in mice upon HSV-1 infection. The researchers also found that knockout mice generated lower amounts of IL-β, iNOS, and type I interferons, but higher levels of CCL2 and Granzyme B. While the knockout mice may have drawn in more leukocytes, they would produce more Granzyme B and an ineffective anti-viral response, which could have been a potential cause of death in the knockouts.
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Adapted from Lucinda, N. et al. 2017. Virol. J. 14:37. Pubmed
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