Normal human premenopausal cervical tissue has been used to derive primary cell populations and to establish ex vivo organ culture systems to study infections with herpes simplex virus (HSV-1 or HSV-2) and human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). Infection with either HSV-1 or HSV-2 rapidly induced multinuclear giant cell formation and widespread damage in mucosal epithelial cells. Subsequent exposure of the damaged mucosal surfaces to HIV-1 revealed frequent co-localization of HSV and HIV-1 antigens. The short-term organ culture system provides direct experimental support for the epidemiological findings that pre-existing sexually transmitted infections, including primary and recurrent herpes virus infections at mucosal surfaces, represent major risk factors for acquisition of primary HIV-1 infection. Epithelial damage in combination with pre-existing inflammation, as described here for overtly normal human premenopausal cervix, creates a highly susceptible environment for the initiation and establishment of primary HIV-1 infection in the sub-mucosa of the cervical transformation zone. © 2011 Horbul et al.
CITATION STYLE
Horbul, J. E., Schmechel, S. C., Miller, B. R. L., Rice, S. A., & Southern, P. J. (2011). Herpes simplex Virus-Induced epithelial damage and susceptibility to human immunodeficiency virus type 1 infection in human cervical organ culture. PLoS ONE, 6(7). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0022638
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