Epidemiology and Immunobiology of HSV Infection

关于美国青少年中HSV-2感染的患病率数据有限。此外，为控制感染和促进发病机制提供基础的初始免疫应答的功能机制和分子靶点在很大程度上是未知的。与老年人相比，检查可能在免疫学上更“幼稚”且更可能被诊断为原发性感染的青少年中的感染对于评估与感染的初始获得、传播或进展为更严重的后遗症（包括复发性溃疡）相关的因素之间的相互作用是重要的。因此，青少年提供了一个独特的机会，以检查这些因素有直接相关的疫苗开发和治疗。确定青少年中HSV-1感染的流行率以及HSV-1和HSV-2血清阳性率之间的相互关系（如果有的话）将为最佳HSV疫苗策略提供进一步的重要信息。我们的目标是：1。确定性活跃的非洲裔美国青少年中流行和偶发HSV-1和HSV-2感染的社会人口统计学和行为危险因素。2.确定与HSV感染个体临床表现相关的细胞介导的免疫应答的自然史。我们将评估CD 4 T细胞对HSV-1和HSV-2（gB和gD）共同糖蛋白、类型特异性gG 2蛋白和HSV感染细胞抗原的识别，沿着Th 1和Th 2细胞因子对这些抗原刺激的反应。3.在HSV-2血清学状态不一致的夫妇中，确定研究过程中青少年及其性伴侣之间HSV-2传播的免疫学风险因素。将使用基于gG 2的类型特异性血清学试验评估传播模式，然后将其与HSV感染的临床病史、异源病毒抗体和关系持续时间相关联。

There are limited data regarding the prevalence of HSV-2 infections among US adolescents. In addition, the functional mechanism and molecular targets of the initial immune responses that provide the foundation for controlling infection and promoting pathogenesis is largely unknown. Examining infection in adolescents who are presumably more immunologically "naive" and more likely to be diagnosed with a primary infection, compared to older individuals provides an important for evaluating the interaction among factors related to initial acquisition of infection, transmission, or progression to more severe sequelae including recurrent ulcers. Thus, adolescents present a unique opportunity to examine those factors which have direct relevance to vaccine development and treatment. Determining the prevalence of HSV-1 infection among adolescents and the interrelationship, if any, between seroprevalence of HSV-1 and HSV-2 will provide further important information regarding optimal HSV vaccine strategies. Specifically our aims are: 1. To determine sociodemographic and behavioral risk factors for prevalent and incident HSV-1 and HSV-2 infection among sexually active African-American adolescents. 2. To determine the natural history of cellular mediated immune responses in relation to clinical manifestations of HSV among infected individuals. We will assess the CD4 T-cell recognition of glycoproteins common to HSV-1 and HSV-2 (gB and gD), the type-specific gG2 protein and HSV-infected cell antigen, along with the Th1 and Th2 cytokine responses to stimulation with these antigens. 3. To determine immunologic risk factors for transmission of HSV-2 between adolescents and their sex partners over the course of the study among couples who are discordant on their HSV-2 serologic status. Transmission patterns will be assessed using gG2-based type-specific serologic assay, and then correlated with clinical histories of HSV infection, antibodies to heterologous virus, and duration of relationships.