2004•Journal of Medical VirologyRequires access
Genotypic analysis of sequential genital herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV‐1) isolates of patients with recurrent HSV‐1 associated genital herpes
R. Wim Roest, William F. Carman, Jeroen Maertzdorf, A Scoular, J. Harvey, Marius Kant, W I van der Meijden, Georges M. G. M. Verjans, A.D.M.E. Osterhaus
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Abstract
Clinical recurrences of Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1)-associated genital herpes are thought to be caused by reactivation of latent endogenous HSV-1. However, the possibility of reinfection with exogenous HSV-1 cannot be excluded. This study aimed to determine the incidence of genital HSV-1 superinfection in patients by investigating the genotype of sequential HSV-1 isolates obtained from the same anatomical site of patients with clinical recurrences of genital HSV-1 recurrent genital herpes. Sequential genital HSV-1 isolates were genotyped by PCR amplification of the hypervariable regions located within the HSV-1 genes US1 and US12. Whereas the sequential HSV-1 isolates in 11 of the 13 patients studied had the same genotypes, the sequential isolates of 2 patients showed a different genotype. The data suggest that HSV-1-induced recurrent genital herpes can be associated with genital reinfection with an exogenous HSV-1 strain.