Herpes: What You Should Know

Herpes: What You Should Know

Did you know that 1 in 6 teens and adults in the U.S. has been infected with genital herpes? With statistics like that, it’s likely that at some point you will probably have sexual contact with someone who has this infection. In fact, many people who have genital herpes aren’t even aware of their condition unless they undergo herpes testing. Being informed about this highly common and contagious sexually transmitted disease (STD) is your best protection from contracting it. Here are some of the most important things you should know about genital herpes: 

The Genital Herpes Virus Explained

When you hear the term ‘herpes,’ the thought of an STD probably comes to mind. However, it might surprise you to know that the same herpes simplex virus (HSV) that causes cold sores also causes genital herpes. There are two types of the virus: HSV-1 and HSV-2. Most cases of genital herpes are caused by HSV-2, however, HSV-1 (of the lips and mouth) can also cause genital herpes if there is contact through oral sex. Both of these viruses can cause painful sores on the genitals, anal area or buttocks of those infected. 

Preventing Genital Herpes

The only absolute protection from contracting genital herpes, or any STD for that matter, is to abstain from sexual contact completely or stay in a monogamous relationship with another individual who is STD-free. However, the next best option for herpes prevention is to always use latex condoms when engaging in sexual contact. Keep in mind that the virus is most contagious during a breakout, also called a flare-up, so it’s best to avoid sex during that time if your partner has the infection. 

How To Know If You Have Herpes

Herpes affects each individual differently. Some who contract herpes may have painful, noticeable outbreaks while others may not even be aware that they have the disease and think it’s just a minor skin condition. Unfortunately, those who have herpes but don’t realize it are most likely to pass the infection on to others unknowingly. If you think you may have genital herpes, the best way to find out for sure is to look into herpes testing. You can do this by visiting your doctor for herpes testing or going through independent herpes testing and STD testing centers that can also determine whether or not you have been infected with the disease. 

What To Do If You Contract Herpes

While there is no cure for herpes that will eliminate breakouts completely, there are options available to minimize the severity of breakouts or the timeframe in which they occur. If you do find you have contracted the disease after receiving herpes testing, one of the most common treatments is an antiviral pill that can be prescribed by your doctor. These can be taken only when breakouts occur or as a suppressive treatment (on a regular basis) to prevent outbreaks from happening often. 

 

Mystery Monkey tests positive for herpes B – Tampa Bay Times

Cornelius, formerly known as the Mystery Monkey of Tampa Bay, has tested positive for the herpes B virus.

Wildlife officials on Thursday received test results from blood that was drawn last week when the wild rhesus macaque was captured in a neighborhood near Lake Maggiore.

The results show Cornelius is healthy, but carries herpes B, a common virus in rhesus macaques, said veterinarian Don Woodman, who has been examining the animal since his capture.

The virus is not life-threatening for the monkey, but may cause “relatively mild lesions,” Woodman said.

“It doesn’t really change anything for Cornelius,” Woodman said. “I don’t see that this creates a need to euthanize him.”

The virus is of greater concern to humans, who can contract it by getting bitten or scratched by a monkey. Symptoms can take up to two weeks to emerge and include fever, headache and blisters near the wound.

Humans who contract the virus can develop encephalitis, a mostly fatal illness that causes swelling of the brain. Of the 22 herpes B cases in recorded history, 15 people have died from encephalitis, according to the National Institutes of Health.

Before his capture last week, the monkey bit Elizabeth Fowler, 60, outside her home.

As a precaution, she was treated for rabies and herpes. A blood test found no evidence of disease.

After she learned of the monkey’s diagnosis, she consulted with a doctor Friday and decided to get more tests just to be sure, said Fowler’s daughter, Shannon.

“She’s been fine,” said Shannon Fowler. “She’s been taking care of herself.”

Dr. John Sinnott, director of infectious diseases at the University of South Florida and Tampa General Hospital, said contracting herpes B from a monkey is “a rare event.”

“If he were in my back yard,” he said, “I wouldn’t be losing any sleep over it.”

The virus, however, may make it more challenging for wildlife officials to find Cornelius a good home because he could infect others of his kind.

At least one facility, Dade City’s Wild Things, is interested in adopting Cornelius after his 30-day quarantine. News that he has the virus doesn’t change that, said Wild Things director Kathy Stearns.

The 22-acre facility is home to more than 200 animals, including jaguars, zebras and several monkeys.

“At this point, I fear that no one is going to want him now,” Stearns said.

Stearns said the facility will find a female macaque for Cornelius if he comes to live there.

Wildlife officials have not yet decided if Cornelius should be moved to the Dade City facility, said Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission spokesman Baryl Martin.

Cornelius was captured Oct. 24 with two tranquilizer darts. He was taken to wildlife rescuer Vernon Yates’s facility for a 30-day quarantine.

Only one more exam, which will test the monkey for tuberculosis, is pending, Woodman said.

“Vernon’s and my concern from the very beginning has been to save this animal’s life,” Woodman said.

Laura C. Morel can be reached at (727)893-8713, or lmorel@tampabay.com.

 

Mystery Monkey tests positive for herpes B – Tampa Bay Times.

Health News – Genital herpes: Yale researchers develop vaccine strategy

Yale researchers have developed a new model for vaccination against genital herpes, a disease for which there has been no cure and no effective immunization.

(Illustration by Michael Helfenbein)

Their study appears in the Advance Online Publication of Nature.

Genital herpes, known formally as herpes simplex virus (HSV), is a mostly sexually transmitted infection(STI) that accounts for significant disease and morbidity.

Until now, most efforts to develop a vaccine havefocused on the immune system’s antibodies, or T cells, circulating through the body. When T cells encounter foreign invaders such as bacteria or viruses, they learn to recognize them and mount ever-stronger immune responses to fight them. But efforts to harness these circulating T cells have not been effective in organs such as the vagina, intestines, lung airways, and central nervous system, which restrict the entry of these “memory” T cells.

To investigate an alternative approach, the Yale team focused instead on peripheral tissue in the female genital tract, where viral exposure occurs. The challenge was to recruit virus-specific T cells into the vaginal mucosa without triggering a potentially harmful inflammatory response of the immune system.

Working with mice, they explored a two-part vaccine strategy they call “prime and pull.” The “priming” involved conventional vaccination to elicit a system-wide T cell response. The “pulling” involvedrecruitment of activated T cells directly into the vaginal tissue, via topical application, of chemokines — substances that help mobilize the immune cells.

They found that the recruited T cells were able to establish a long-term niche and offer protective immunity against genital herpes by reducing the spread of HSV into the sensory neurons.

The Yale team’s new vaccination model may offer a promising vaccination strategy against not just HSV, but potentially other STIs such as HIV-1. “This new vaccine approach can work with any vaccines that elicit strong T cell immunity, and will set the stage for protection against infectious diseases by setting up memory T-cells at the site of exposure,” said lead author Akiko Iwasaki, professor of immunobiology at Yale School of Medicine and a member of Yale Cancer Center’s molecular virology program.

“This technology can be potentially applied to other infectious agents that enter through a given portal, such as the genital tract, respiratory tract, the skin, or gut,” she added.

Co-author is Haina Shin of Yale School of Medicine. The study was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health.

Nanoparticles reduce herpes symptoms | Yale Daily News

Nanoparticles reduce herpes symptoms | Yale Daily News.

Yale researchers have developed nanoparticle technology that could one day cure herpes simplex virus type 2, or HSV-2.

Mark Saltzman, chair of the biomedical engineering department of the Yale School of Medicine, and researchers in his laboratory have been working to develop nanoparticles to decrease symptom severity and boost survival rates of mice with HSV-2. Saltzman and his colleagues published a paper in the August issue of the “Journal of Controlled Release” in which they state that administering three doses of siRNA nanoparticles improved survival rates for mice infected with HSV-2.

By delivering siRNA molecules to the site of infection, these nanoparticles reduce the expression of the nectin-1 protein involved in HSV-2 infection and cell-to-cell transmission. As a result, HSV-2 is less likely to enter cells surrounding the site of infection.

“This work provides proof-of-concept that these siRNA delivery vehicles are promising options for topical, localized therapeutics for sexually transmitted infections,” postdoctoral researcher Jill Steinbach said in an October press release. Steinbach, the lead author of the paper, told the News on Sunday that administration of nanoparticles increased the amount of time mice could live with the disease to an “unprecedented 28 days.”

Administration of nanoparticles can cause inflammation and leave patients susceptible to additional infections, an issue that has hindered similar experiments in other labs, Steinbach said. The researchers successfully decreased inflammation in mice by using an FDA-approved, biodegradable non-toxic polymer — polylactic co-glycolic acid, she added.

Saltzman’s lab specializes in drug delivery, particularly in transmitting nanoparticles across the blood-brain barrier and across mucosal surfaces such as the intervaginal wall. Biomedical engineering Ph.D. candidate Rachel Fields GRD ’13, who works in Saltzman’s lab, said this lab is one of many working to identify diseases that can be treated using nanoparticles. Saltzman’s research team currently includes seven graduate students as well as four postdoctoral researchers.

“The lab is like a family and we all collaborate and support one another’s research,” molecular physiology Ph.D. candidate Kseniya Gavrilov GRD ’15 said. “Professor Saltzman is a wonderful mentor, and he doesn’t micromanage, but expects all of us to be responsible and not waste time or resources.”

Saltzman and his colleagues seek to improve upon their work by developing surface modifications that will advance nanoparticle delivery, easing cell penetration. Steinbach said the researchers are currently working on attaching peptides to the nanoparticle surfaces to increase cell binding and internalization, boosting the efficacy of the nanoparticles. Researchers also said they hope their use of FDA-approved, non-toxic materials in the nanoparticles will permit quicker licensing of the treatment for humans suffering from HSV-2.

“We are hopeful to further improve delivery of these materials and apply them to a wide range of pathologies in global health,” Steinbach said in the press release.

HSV-2 infects one of every six people between the ages of 14 and 49 in the United States, according to the Center for Disease Control.