Cited by 266Alzheimer's disease research and treatmentsHerpesvirus Infections and TreatmentsNeuroinflammation and Neurodegeneration Mechanisms

Recurrent herpes simplex virus-1 infection induces hallmarks of neurodegeneration and cognitive deficits in mice

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De Chiara, Giovanna, Piacentini, Roberto, Fabiani, Marco, Mastrodonato, Alessia, Marcocci, Maria Elena, Limongi, Dolores, Napoletani, Giorgia, Protto, Virginia +5 more·2019·PLOS Pathogens

Abstract

Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) is a DNA neurotropic virus, usually establishing latent infections in the trigeminal ganglia followed by periodic reactivations. Although numerous findings suggested potential links between HSV-1 and Alzheimer's disease (AD), a causal relation has not been demonstrated yet. Hence, we set up a model of recurrent HSV-1 infection in mice undergoing repeated cycles of viral reactivation. By virological and molecular analyses we found: i) HSV-1 spreading and replication in different brain regions after thermal stress-induced virus reactivations; ii) accumulation of AD hallmarks including amyloid-β protein, tau hyperphosphorylation, and neuroinflammation markers (astrogliosis, IL-1β and IL-6). Remarkably, the progressive accumulation of AD molecular biomarkers in neocortex and hippocampus of HSV-1 infected mice, triggered by repeated virus reactivations, correlated with increasing cognitive deficits becoming irreversible after seven cycles of reactivation. Collectively, our findings provide evidence that mild and recurrent HSV-1 infections in the central nervous system produce an AD-like phenotype and suggest that they are a risk factor for AD.

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Crossref · 10.1371/journal.ppat.1007617

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  • In mice with recurrent HSV-1 infection, HSV-1 spreads and proliferates in different brain regions following reactivation by thermal stress, accompanied by Aβ deposition, tau hyperphosphorylation and neuroinflammation.

    “In mice with recurrent HSV-1 infection, HSV-1 was shown to spread and proliferate in different brain regions following reactivation by thermal stress. This was accompanied by the occurrence of pathological events associated with AD including Aβ deposition, tau hyperphosphorylation and neuroinflammation [534].”

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  1. [1]Roizman B, Knipe DM. Herpes simplex virus and their replication In: Knipe DM, Howley PM, editors. Fields Virology: Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins; 2001 p. 2432– 4.

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Authors
De Chiara, G., Piacentini, R., Fabiani, M., Mastrodonato, A., Marcocci, M. E., Limongi, D., Napoletani, G., Protto, V., Coluccio, P., Celestino, I., Li Puma, D. D., Grassi, C., & Palamara, A. T.
Affiliations
  • Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (IT)
  • Istituto Pasteur (IT)
  • IRCCS San Raffaele Roma (IT)
  • Istituto di Farmacologia Traslazionale (IT)
Venue
PLOS Pathogens
Published
2019-03-14
Volume
15
Issue
3
Pages
e1007617
ISSN
  • 1553-7366 (ISSN-L)
  • 1553-7374
OpenAlex
W2921910376
Cited by
266
References
70
Citations by year
2026: 33 · 2025: 34 · 2024: 38 · 2023: 26 · 2022: 44 · 2021: 42 · 2020: 36 · 2019: 12 · 2018: 1
FWCI
22.90
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • PLoS Pathogens (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • IRIS Research product catalog (Sapienza University of Rome) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by)
  • Florence Research (University of Florence) (submittedVersion)
  • PubliCatt (Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Funders
Ministero dell’Istruzione, dell’Università e della Ricerca (PRIN2015W729WH_001, PRIN2015W729WH_005)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Alzheimer's disease research and treatments
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Herpesvirus Infections and Treatments
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Neurology › Neuroinflammation and Neurodegeneration Mechanisms
Keywords
herpes simplex virus type 1, Alzheimer's disease, neurodegeneration, cognitive impairment, amyloid-beta, tau hyperphosphorylation, neuroinflammation, astrocyte activation, IL-1β, interleukin-6, hippocampus, neocortex, thermal stress (biology)
MeSH terms
Alzheimer Disease, Animals, Brain, Cognition, Cognition Disorders, Disease Models, Animal, Female, Mice, Inbred BALB C, Trigeminal Ganglion, Virus Activation, Virus Replication, Amyloid beta-Peptides, Herpesvirus 1, Human, Neurodegenerative Diseases, Mice, Cognitive Dysfunction

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