Immunoelectron microscopic localization of herpes simplex virus antigens in rabbit cornea with antihuman IgG-antiferritin hybrid antibodies.

Sheep antihuman IgG-antiferritin hybrid antibodies were used for the ultrastructural localization of herpes simplex virus (HSV) antigens in rabbit corneas from animals with herpetic keratitis. In animals with epithelial keratitis in which active viral replication is occurring (6 days after infection), viral antigen was found within nuclei, on nuclear membranes, and on cell surface membranes of epithelial cells. In animals with early necrotizing keratitis in which active viral replication cannot be demonstrated (14 to 21 days after infection), viral antigen was found in association with the cell surface of stromal keratocytes. Since lymphocytic cells in intimate contact with degenerating keratocytes have previously been identified in the cornea, these observations provide a basis for the view that cell-mediated immunopathogenesis is involved in the etiology of herpetic stromal keratitis.