Key result
HSV-1 UL12.5 promotes viral reactivation in neurons by co-opting antiviral RNA and DNA sensing pathways.
Why the study?
Although viruses typically subvert innate immune pathways for replication, evidence suggests they can also co-opt antiviral responses for their benefit, including during HSV-1 latency and reactivation.
HSV-1 utilizes its UL12.5 protein to co-opt host antiviral mitochondrial nucleic acid-sensing pathways to facilitate reactivation from latent infection in neurons.
Although viruses subvert innate immune pathways for their replication, there is evidence they can also co-opt antiviral responses for their benefit. The ubiquitous human pathogen, Herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1), encodes a protein (UL12.5) that induces the release of mitochondrial nucleic acid into the cytosol, which activates immune-sensing pathways and reduces productive replication in nonneuronal cells. HSV-1 establishes latency in neurons and can reactivate to cause disease. We found that UL12.5 is required for HSV-1 reactivation in neurons and acts to directly promote viral lytic gene expression during initial exit from latency. Further, the direct activation of innate immune-sensing pathways triggered HSV-1 reactivation and compensated for a lack of UL12.5. Finally, we found that the induction of HSV-1 lytic genes during reactivation required intact RNA- and DNA-sensing pathways, demonstrating that HSV-1 can respond to and active antiviral nucleic acid-sensing pathways to reactivate from a latent infection.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Krakowiak et al. (2025) studied Herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1) latent infection. HSV-1 UL12.5 was evaluated on HSV-1 reactivation and lytic gene expression. HSV-1 UL12.5 promotes viral reactivation from latency in neurons by co-opting antiviral RNA- and DNA-sensing pathways to induce lytic gene expression.
Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context: