Researchers have solved the mystery of why the virus that causes chickenpox and shingles can remain dormant for decades. They found that active genetic material is still present in nerve cells.
A research team led by UCL and Erasmus University has shown that, in 90% of adults worldwide, there is one strand of RNA transcript within the varicella zoster virus (VZV) that remains active in nerve cells after recovery from chicken pox.
The results are significant as previous studies have been unable to identify how VZV latency works.
Professor Judith Breuer, lead author of the study, said: “It’s been more than 30 years since VZV latency in human nerve cells was first described, and ever since then, researchers have been trying to identify the factor that causes the virus to remain latent. Our discovery provides an important step forward towards control of this virus.”
The virus is reactivated in around 30% of people as shingles, which causes a painful rash and the potential for blindness, stroke or debilitating pain.
The team found that the latency-associated transcript stops expression of a gene that is needed for viral replication. This suggests that the RNA transcript may play a key role in determining whether the virus is actively replicating or remaining dormant.
To read the full paper visit Nature Communications
Image Credit - Centre for Disease Control/Dr. Erskine Palmer/B.G. Partin, Source: Public Health Image Library
