Herpes simplex virus latency: the cellular location of virus in dorsal root ganglia and the fate of the infected cell following virus activation.

Latent infections have been established in cervical dorsal root ganglia of Balb/c mice following peripheral inoculation of ts mutants of HSV-1. Activation of the mutant LS2 at the non-permissive temperature in vitro by culture of excised ganglia, or in vivo by neurosurgery has allowed the unambiguous identification of the neuron as the site of latent infection. Evidence is presented which shows that activation of virus infection in latently infected ganglia by neurosurgery results in a reduction of the number of latent foci in that ganglion. One interpretation of this observation is that the productive infection which follows activation of latent virus in the neuron leads to the destruction of that cell.