Co-occurrence of Herpes Simplex Virus 1 and 2 in Patients Suspected with Different Neurological Ailments in Karachi

Background: Viral meningitis (VM) is the most prevalent type of meningitis and mainly characterized by the meningeal inflammation caused by Herpes simplex viruses.Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples of patients of neurological diseases were screened for viral etiological agents i.e.Herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV1) and Herpes simplex virus 2 (HSV2) and occurrence of co-infection of both the viral strains.Methods: 92 CSF samples were collected from different mentally ailed patients admitted in the local hospitals of Karachi.Out of which 30 bacteria negative CSF samples were selected for the screening of viral etiology.Total cellular DNA extraction was done by the conventional methods.HSV1 and HSV2 specific primers targeting the glycoprotein G gene were used for the viral detection by polymerase chain reaction (PCR).Results: Presence of HSV2 was confirmed in (26.6%) clinical samples of CSF whereas HSV1 was found in only (6.6%) of samples.(36.6%)CSF samples demonstrated the mixed viral infection of HSV1 and HSV2.While (23.33%) CSF samples were found negative for any viral etiology.Total cellular DNA quantification revealed the increased concentration i.e. 802µg/ml in HSV2 infections.Conclusion: Findings of the present study demonstrated that the detection and diagnosis of neurological infections on the basis of clinical signs are not sufficient.Therefore, existence of viral etiological agents must be checked subsequent to bacterial culture to avoid the misdiagnosis and wrong treatment of the CNS infections.