Greenwich Village Women Are Swimming In STDs

Oh, Bobby, we mustn't!

STD rates are on the rise in Greenwich Village, and it looks like lots of ladies are doing the nasty in some, ahem, nasty ways, according to new data from the Health Department [pdf].

The number of female gonorrhea diagnoses in the Village has skyrocketed by 57 percent between 2008 and 2010, making it the highest spike in the city. Chlamydia rates also rose by 12 percent for women in the Village, though East Harlem ladies took the dubious honor of highest jump for that disease overall (up by 27 percent). Men in the Village, on the other hand, saw a decrease in STDs—chlamydia cases dropped by 30 percent and gonorrhea by four percent. Good job, gents! In the meantime, the Bronx retains its unfortunate titles as the least healthy, most STD-ridden county in the state.

Health officials told amNY that the spikes in the Village are probably due to better testing, but that won't solve the problem: “It’s a great thing that we’re capturing more people,” said Dr. David Bell. “But the fact remains that people are not well-educated about sexually transmitted infections … besides just HIV.” Which is true: another recent study showed that more young people are having unsafe sex than ever, despite Professor Furburger's best attempts to dissuade them.

Hopefully, however, between the newly mandated public school sex-ed programming and the continued success of gimmicky contraceptives, STD numbers across the city will begin a steady decline. Those free condoms by the door of so many Village bars aren't just for decoration. [via DNAinfo]

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Ask Boobs Radley: I Lied About Herpes, Now What?

Everyone on Twitter considers themselves an expert of one type or another. We figured a woman who grew up with the nickname @BoobsRadley must have plenty of experience discussing issues of love and sex. (Plus, the Huffington Post called her one of the funniest women on Twitter.) Read on to find out how to send your questions to her.

Q: I casually lied about having herpes to get revenge on a girl who dumped me really cruelly. It worked--she freaked out and immediately went to her doctor and got a battery of STD tests. But I've since realized that she doesn't have health insurance, and now I feel like a heel. Should I send her an anonymous check?

I don't know. Are monsters allowed to have checking accounts? Let me just call up the restless demon spirit of Ted Bundy and ask him where he banks. First of all: I understand wanting to get revenge on somebody, because I have gypsy blood and I'm a genius. I get the IMPULSE. I would never act on it in such a weird and horrible way. I don't know if you know this but "a battery of STD" tests probably involves a lot of discomfort and a very long Q-tip. I think the thinking-person's penance for you here is probably to apologize in person and pay for her medical bills, but the viking justice part of me really wants you to shove something up your pee hole. But maybe also for you to go to jail? I don't know, I feel like lying about the herp should be some kind of crime. Anyhow, you're an awful person, thank you for writing in.

Q: I lie about my height on dating sites. I know this seems dishonest, but a lot of girls would't look at me twice if they knew my real measurements (5 feet 4 inches). I've never had anybody openly complain about this, but after the inevitable, initial look of disappointment, I've had some pretty good dates. My lady coworker says this is wrong. Is this wrong?

Everybody lies a LITTLE bit on dating sites. Like, for instance, "The lower half of my body is as thin as the upper, photographed part" or "I'm not going to murder you" or "Love exists." But I'm a firm believer that people should be allowed to have their physical preferences. Which is why I never advocate for anybody dating a chunky gal or nearsighted Asian dudes out of some kind of guilt, because there are plenty of us out there who are into those people, organically, and please leave them for us to have sex with. Likewise, there are women who like short guys. Wouldn't you rather be with somebody who is attracted to you than with somebody who just kind of gave in to your mini-ness? I don't think "Aw, f*** it" is anything you want to think of somebody saying before sexing you. So yes. Stop lying.

Q: My girlfriend is going to study in England next semester. We've tentatively discussed "taking a break" for that time, but I do love her and want to get back together with her eventually. Do "breaks" really work?

England is full of men with accents. Are you aware of this? That accent can take a dude from a 6 to a 10 in seconds flat. I don't know if it's the same way with women--I've tried to do my Eliza Doolittle on strange men in bars and it just makes them back into things while trying to get away from me. But yeah--college semesters abroad are rough on a relationship. But I know plenty of people who have taken breaks and gotten back together. I think it's about whether or not your relationship is sustainable in the first place. It doesn't matter if a girl lives in your dorm or in her charming flat in Notting Hill (I assume all people in England do this).... If you guys are meant to get back together, you will. Also, maybe learn to fake an accent.

Q: I am kind of in love with the new girl I just started seeing. She likes comic books and has a motorcycle and is basically perfect in every way. Except for the fact that she's bulimic. I mean, she hasn't told me that she's bulimic but it's not an easy thing to hide. Should I get out now or is this the kind of thing you run from?

A bulimic motorcycle-loving comic book girl??? I don't know. I think you have to worry about her other boyfriend, Zach Braff. Dude, I can't tell you not to date somebody you're falling for because she's got Mental Problems. I mean, maybe rent "Crazy/Beautiful" and "Mad Love" and that one where Tracey Gold is anorexic to see if you can hang with it. Also, you probably shouldn't be with anybody who is sick. I'd say maybe talk to her about getting some help, because people who are recovering from eating disorders probably need to focus on their wellness and not about the adorable new guy who is on to their barf game. But if you decide to go for it, bring your balls. And probably some Binaca.

Tags Advice Column, Ask Boobs Radley, Boobs Radley, dating advice, Lies, STDs

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Herpes Virus Shows Early Promise In Treating Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

Oncolytic viral therapy shows great potential
for treating an aggressive form of breast cancer

Newswise — SAN FRANCISCO: Researchers from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City report they have successfully treated triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) in petri dishes and in mouse models with a method based upon a herpes simplex virus. The study on the viral-based therapy was reported today at the 2011 Annual Clinical Congress of the American College of Surgeons.

Triple-negative breast cancer is an aggressive type of breast cancer that can account for up to 20 percent of all cases and is responsible for a disproportionate number of breast cancer deaths, according to the researchers. Moreover, the disease is most likely to surface in younger women (< 35 years old), especially if they are African American or Hispanic.

Because these types of cancerous tumors do not express the estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, or HER-2 receptor, found in other more common types, newer targeted therapies such as tamoxifen and Herceptin are ineffective against the disease.

“Triple-negative breast cancer patients are in dire need of targeted therapies,” according to Sepideh Gholami, MD, a research fellow in the laboratory of Yuman Fong, MD, FACS, at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. “Although these tumors respond to a variety of chemotherapies, they have a high recurrence and metastatic rate.”

In the study, Dr. Gholami and her colleagues examined TNBC cell lines and infected them with a herpes simplex virus called NV1066. After treatment with the virus, more than 90 percent cell kill was achieved in all cell lines within a week. Furthermore, the researchers injected TNBC cells into laboratory mice. After treating the mouse models with the virus, and measuring the change in the tumors over 20 days, they found that the tumors had largely disappeared.

It was very surprising to see such an intense response. “The difference was dramatic, because sometimes we can stop tumor growth and achieve tumor regression,” Dr. Gholami said. “Our results are very exciting because we may be coming up with an approach that could potentially exploit the unique vulnerabilities of these specific cancer cells.”

Moreover, Dr. Gholami explained that TNBC cells have high levels of p-MAPK, a protein that promotes cancer cells to grow and has been reported as a potential cause for resistance to current conventional therapies. Knowing that the herpes virus specifically targets cells that over express this protein is the reason she chose to test this treatment protocol. “When we infect TNBC cells with the herpes virus and measure p-MAPK levels, the protein level decreases with time after treatment with the virus,” Dr. Gholami said.

The hope is that advances in oncolytic viral therapy, which uses viruses tailored to target and destroy cancer cells while sparing healthy cells, will allow researchers to develop more effective strategies for hard-to-treat cancers. A similar herpes virus has been tested in clinical trials against head and neck cancers. But this is the first laboratory study to show promise in using the therapy to treat TNBC.

The next steps, Dr. Gholami said, are to map out the pathways in which the virus kills the tumor cells to determine how to improve upon this mechanism. In the future, the Fong laboratory, which is on the forefront in oncolytic viral therapy research, will continue this avenue of investigation in animal studies. The team will also work to identify leads to understand what existing chemotherapy drugs can be used synergistically with this viral therapy. Finding complementary treatments that kill fast-growing cancer cells and combat resistance is the key to possibly making a cure a reality.

If additional animal studies are also positive, human clinical trials could be on the horizon. “Our goal is to improve this version of the virus and get it into a clinical trial,” Dr. Gholami said. “Ultimately, I believe the treatment for TNBC will be a multimodality targeted treatment approach: potentially using a viral-based therapy plus some other targeted chemotherapy or radiation.”

The study was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health and the Flight Attendant Medical Research Institution.

Other participants in the study include Chun-Hao Chen, MD; Sizhi Paul Gao, MD, PhD; Joshua Carson, MD, PhD; Taejin Song, MD, PhD, FACS; Jackie Bromberg, MD, PhD; and Yuman Fong, MD, FACS.

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Cats can get herpes virus, but vaccine can help prevent it

By Denise Baran-Unland Sun-Times Media October 28, 2011 10:38AM

Updated: October 28, 2011 6:06PM

It was obvious our oldest cat, Frances, was not feeling well. Her eyes were glazed and runny; her nose was dripping. We took her to the vet who said, “It’s probably an upper respiratory infection.”

So Frances took her antibiotics, but a couple of months later her symptoms returned. Seasonal allergies were suspected, so we added Benadryl until the first hard freeze.

When she got sick again during the middle of a move, the vet discovered the underlying cause: feline herpes.

More technically known as Feline Viral Rhinotracheitis, feline herpes is a common virus that causes upper respiratory disease in cats, said Dr. Tony Kremer, owner of six Chicago-area veterinary hospitals and Help Save Pets animal shelter in Plainfield.

“Feline herpes is transmitted through nasal and ocular secretions from direct cat-to-cat contact or from shared food, water dishes and toys,” Kremer said. “It can also be spread when handling an infected cat and then handling a healthy cat without properly disinfecting your hands.”

Symptoms in cats

Primary symptoms are runny eyes and nose; many cats with feline herpes also have severe sneezing, Kremer said. The eyes may even become inflamed to the point of swelling.

The American Veterinary Association claims feline herpes virus type I, as well as feline calicivirus, is responsible for up to 90 percent of upper respiratory infections in cats.

“It’s much more common in the young due to their immature immune system and the fact that they have not yet finished their vaccines,” Kremer said. “Lack of vaccination, stressful situations, exposure to multiple cats and being outdoors makes cats susceptible to it.”

Vaccinations for both viruses are available, although the vaccine for feline herpes does not mean a cat won’t acquire the infection. The vaccination will, however, reduce the disease’s severity and reduce shedding. This protection may last up to three years, but not all veterinarians agree.

“I recommend re-vaccination each year,” Kremer said. “We have seen a rash of preventable diseases due to unreliable protocols. A series of three to five vaccines are necessary to give full immunity, depending how young a kitten is when it starts its shots.”

Different virus

Feline herpes is not the same virus as the herpes simplex viruses that humans contract. The only similarity between them is the fact that none of the viruses can be cured, only controlled.

Once an affected cat is symptom free, he or she may be asymptomatic for life, although it remains a carrier of the virus, so proper sanitation, especially in multicat households, is imperative.

Symptoms may again appear if the cat becomes stressed, but treatment is usually supportive — keep the patient warm and ensure good nutrition and hydration — until the virus runs it course, Kremer said.

L-lysine has an anti-viral effect and can help fend off the virus. Antibiotics are useful for any secondary infections that occur. Eye medication to reduce inflammation and secondary bacterial infection is “a must,” Kremer said. Take the cat back to its veterinarian should symptoms persist despite treatment.

“If a cat has signs of feline herpes that do not dissipate after a few weeks, make sure it is tested for FELV and FIV,” Kremer said, “since these diseases weaken the immune system.”

© 2011 Sun-Times Media, LLC. All rights reserved. This material may not be copied or distributed without permission. For more information about reprints and permissions, visit http://www.suntimesreprints.com/. To order a reprint of this article, click here.

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What's the Only Good Thing About Herpes?

Researchers at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York have found what could be the herpes virus' only redeeming feature — it shows promise as a treatment for an aggressive form of breast cancer, reports MyHealthNewsDaily. The researchers, who presented the study at the annual meeting of the American College of Surgeons this week, started by infecting triple-negative breast cancer cell lines with the NV1066 genetically engineered herpes virus, which killed up to 90 percent of the cancer cells within a week, the article says. Next, the researchers injected mice with the cancer cells. After treating the mice for 20 days with the herpes strain the animals' tumors also disappeared, the article adds. The response may be because triple-negative breast cancers have high levels of the p-MAPK protein, which the herpes virus specifically targets, the researchers say. But the results are still preliminary, and more work needs to be done to determine if the herpes virus will have the same effect in human cancer patients, and whether it would be safe as a treatment, MyHealthNewsDaily adds.

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Tenofovir Vaginal Gel Protects Against Herpes

Anti-HIV drug, tenofovir, when formulated as a vaginal gel, was found to reduce herpes simplex risk in females, researchers from the USA, Belgium and Italy reported in the journal Cell Host & Microbe. The scientists explained that this is because of the higher concentrations that reach vaginal cells in the vaginal gel formulation, compared to the drug when taken orally.

The authors explained that tenofovir disables a DNA enzyme of the herpes virus - reverse transcriptase - thus stopping its spread.

This study was a collaboration between researchers from the Catholic University of Leuven (Belgium), the University of Rome (Italy), the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) (USA), and Gilead Sciences Inc.

A 2010 clinical trial found that tenofovir in vaginal gel form reduced the risk of HSV (herpes simplex virus) infections, as well as HIV infections in females. In this latest report, scientists say they can explain why.

Oral Tenofovir had been shown to undermine the reproduction of HIV. However, nobody knew it could block the genital herpes virus.

Leonid Margolis, Ph.D., NICHD, said:

"HIV infection is closely associated with herpes viral infection. When people with genital herpes are exposed to HIV, they are more likely to become infected than are people who do not carry the herpes virus. Human tissues convert tenofovir to a form that suppresses HIV. We found that this form of tenofovir also suppresses HSV. This discovery may help to identify drugs to treat the two viruses even more effectively."

Dr. Margolis explained that previously approved drugs which are found to have other therapeutic benefits, apart from those they were approved for, can save millions of dollars. A new compound has to undergo extensive testing for efficacy and safety before eventually coming onto the market several years and millions of dollars later. In the case of an already existing drug, most of the safety and other testing has already been done.

The scientist studied individual cells and groups of cells that had been infected with HSV. They found that tenofovir, in high concentrations blocked the virus' ability to reproduce.

Their study also showed that tenofovir does not damage cells, such as those that line the vagina. Vaginal cells are targeted by HIV and HSV.

Cellular enzymes convert tenofovir into another chemical form which suppresses both HIV and HSV. The new chemical form deactivates an enzyme that is crucial for the virus' reproduction.

They tested tenofovir in tissue samples, including tonsils and cervix. After 12 days they found that tenofovir-treated samples only had from 1% to 13% of viral levels compared to untreated samples. They also found that tenofovir blocked viral reproduction of both HIV and HSV simultaneously in infected tissue.

In laboratory experiments, they found that mice infected with the herpes virus had no herpes symptoms and lived longer when treated with tenofovir.

When tenofovir is taken orally, concentration levels in target cells are not high enough to affect HSV in any significant way, the authors explained.

Dr. Morgolis said:

"When using the gel, the amount of tenofovir on the affected tissues is about 100 times the amount in the body when taking tenofovir in pill form. That explains why its anti-herpes activity wasn't noticed before. Thus, under proper conditions, an anti-HIV drug becomes an anti-HSV drug."

Written by Christian Nordqvist
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

Visit our sexual health / stds section for the latest news on this subject. "Topical Tenofovir, a Microbicide Effective against HIV, Inhibits Herpes Simplex Virus-2 Replication"
Graciela Andrei, Robert Snoeck, and Jan Balzarini (senior author), Joost van den Oord, Catholic University of Leuven; Emanuela Balestra, Carlo-Federico Perno (senior author), University of Rome; Tomas Cihlar, Gilead Sciences; and Andrea Lisco, Christophe Vanpouille, Andrea Introini, and Leonid Margolis (senior author) NICHD.
Cell Host & Microbe, Volume 10, Issue 4, 379-389, 20 October 2011 (10.1016/j.chom.2011.08.015) Please use one of the following formats to cite this article in your essay, paper or report:

MLA

Christian Nordqvist. "Tenofovir Vaginal Gel Protects Against Herpes." Medical News Today. MediLexicon, Intl., 21 Oct. 2011. Web.
30 Oct. 2011. APA

Please note: If no author information is provided, the source is cited instead.

posted by Sammy on 25 Oct 2011 at 9:51 pm

Women with herpes are unlucky to have herpes because it brings much trouble to their life; they are lucky at the same time because the virus will make them have less chance to have breast cancer.

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Herpes Virus Could Kill Aggressive Breast Cancer

A genetically engineered version of the virus that causes herpes shows promise as a treatment for a particularly aggressive type of breast cancer, according to a new study in animals.

The virus targeted and killed triple-negative breast cancer cells in mice. Triple-negative breast cancer is a form of breast cancer that cannot be treated with hormone therapies, such as tamoxifen and Herceptin.

The results are preliminary, and it's not clear whether the therapy will have the same effect on tumors growing in people. Much more research is needed to determine this. If a treatment is developed, it will likely be used in conjunction with other cancer therapies, including chemotherapy and radiation, the researchers said.

The study will be presented today (Oct. 24) at the meeting of the American College of Surgeons in San Francisco.

Herpes therapy

Triple-negative breast cancer accounts for about 20 percent of all breast cancer cases. It disproportionally effects young, African-American women and is usually treated with chemotherapy. (Triple-negative breast cancers are not fueled by the hormone estrogen, so they do no respond to treatments designed to block the hormone.)

Study researcher Dr. Sepideh Gholami, a research fellow in the at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. and colleagues infected breast cancer cells in a dish with a herpes virus called NV1066. Within a week, the virus killed up to 90 percent of the tumor cells.

The researchers then injected breast cancer cells into mice. After treating the mice with the virus for 20 days, they saw the tumors had largely disappeared, Gholami said.

The dramatic response may be due to the fact that triple-negative breast cancer cells have high levels of a protein called p-MAPK. The herpes virus specifically targets cells with high levels of this protein, the researchers said.

The therapy is just one of many in recent years to explore the use of viruses as a means to target and destroy cancer cells. The herpes virus has been tested in people as a treatment for head and neck cancer, but not for breast cancer, the researchers said.

More research

The study is an "extremely exciting step" in the pursuit of a cancer therapy that uses the herpes virus, said Dr. Stefan Gluck, a medical oncologist at the University of Miami's Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center.

However, the researchers still need to show that this herpes virus is safe to use in patients. After all, the herpes virus is known to cause infection in humans, including infections in the brain. Proving the therapy's safety will likely be a lengthy process, and will involve testing it on other animals first, such as dogs and primates, Gluck said.

The researchers plan to figure out exactly how the virus works to kill the breast cancer cells, and try to bolster its effect.

Pass it on: The herpes virus can infect and kill breast cancer cells in a dish and in mice.

This story was provided by MyHealthNewsDaily, a sister site to LiveScience. Follow MyHealthNewsDaily staff writer Rachael Rettner on Twitter @RachaelRettner. Find us on Facebook.

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Drugs That Fight Herpes May Thwart Alzheimer's Disease

Antiviral drugs used to combat herpes virus infections could slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease, a new study suggests.

The herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV1), which causes most cold sores, has previously been tied to the development of Alzheimer's disease.

In the study, cells infected with HSV1 showed a buildup of the proteins known to damage the brains of people with Alzheimer's. Treating the cells with the antiviral drug acyclovir significantly reduced the accumulation of these proteins.

The results are preliminary and future studies would need to determine if antiviral drugs can benefit Alzheimer's patients. And even if the treatment works, it is unlikely to be a cure, said study researcher Ruth Itzhaki, a professor at the University of Manchester in the United Kingdom. But, it could prevent the disease from causing extensive damage in the brain, Itzhaki said.

"If people could be treated at an early stage, [then] hopefully they might stay at that stage and not deteriorate further," Itzhaki said.

Herpes and Alzheimer's

More than 80 percent of Americans are infected with the herpes simplex virus (not everyone who is infected has symptoms).

Having HSV1 in the brain has been shown to be a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease in people with certain genetic mutations. And Itzhaki and colleagues previously showed that the genetic material of HSV1 is found within plaques present in the brains of Alzheimer's disease patients. These plaques, formed from accumulation of proteins called amyloid-beta, are a hallmark of the condition.

Itzhaki and colleagues infected cells in lab dishes with HSV1. They found the infection lead to buildup of amyloid-beta and tau — another protein implicated in Alzheimer's disease.

After treatment with acyclovir, the tau protein was eliminated almost completely, andaccumulation of the amyloid-beta protein was reduced by 72 percent, compared with untreated cells.

Acyclovir has few side effects, Itzhaki said. The drug targets only the virus, and doesn't affect the normal functions of human cells, she said.

What about people?

The idea that the herpes virus causes Alzheimer's-related damage in human brains, and not just cells in a dish, is controversial.

"We need to see this work replicated and confirmed in other labs by independent teams of researchers," said William Thies, chief medical and scientific officer at the Alzheimer's Association. "There is no new insight in this [study] regarding the value in humans of this potential avenue of therapy," Thies said.

However, studies are increasingly showing a link between Alzheimer's and the herpes virus, said Dr. Elaine Bearer, a pathologist at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine.

"We've thought of [herpes virus] as a nuisance. It's probably not just a nuisance," Bearer said. One of Bearer's studies recently found that the herpes virus interacts with a protein that goes on to form amyloid-beta.

Because antiviral drugs against herpes are relatively safe and inexpensive, the fact that no studies have tested these drugs on Alzheimer's patients is "pretty crazy," Bearer said.

Both Bearer and Itzhaki said they hope to start trials in humans.

More research needs to be done to determine which antiviral drug or combination of drugs would be most effective in people, Itzhaki said.

Pass it on: Antiviral drugs that target the herpes virus may reduce damage caused by Alzheimer's disease.

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Herpes Antiviral Drugs Targeted to Delay Progression of Alzheimer Disease: Study

Scientists at the University of Manchester suggest using antiviral drugs to slow the progression of Alzheimer's Disease (AD).  

The results of the study seem to indicate that the herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV1) is a risk factor for contracting Alzheimer's, when it is present in the brains of people who have a specific genetic risk of the disease. The study states that drugs targeting the herpes virus could slow progression of AD.

The study, published in the Public Library of Science One (PLoS), notes that current treatments for AD are merely palliative and has a calming impact on the individual. However, there is an urgent need for medicines that could delay the progress of the disease.

The new study is based on evidence implicating HSV1 as a causative agent in AD.  The first suggestion that HSV1 might have a role in AD was based on the observation that in herpes simplex encephalitis (HSE), the brain regions damaged are the same ones as those that are affected in AD

Study researchers at Manchester claim that the study is the first to investigate antiviral effects on AD-like changes. They infer that since antiviral agents greatly reduce ß-amyloid and P-tau levels in HSV1-infected cells, they should be suitable for treating AD.

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Further, the scientists say that HSV1 theory has an advantage over current AD therapies. This revolves around acyclovir - an antiviral drug - that can be used to target only the virus and not the host or normal and uninfected cells. In addition, these agents are safe and relatively inexpensive.

Researchers have now also established that the herpes virus causes an accumulation of two key AD proteins - ß-amyloid (Aß) that, primarily, causes plaque - and abnormally phosphorylated tau (P-tau), the causative component for tangles. Both proteins are thought by many scientists to be involved in the development of the disease.

"We have found that the viral DNA in AD brains is very specifically located within amyloid plaques," said Professor Ruth Itzhaki, who led the team in the University's Faculty of Life Sciences, "This, together with the production of amyloid that the virus induces, suggests that HSV1 is a cause of toxic amyloid products and of plaques."

"Our results suggest that HSV1, together with the host genetic factor, is a major risk for AD, and that antiviral agents might be used for treating patients to slow disease progression. Also, by targeting a cause of Alzheimer's disease, other viral damage, besides ß-amyloid and P-tau, which might be involved in the disease's pathogenesis, would also be inhibited," Itzhaki adds.

Antiviral drugs currently available act by targeting replications of HSV1 DNA. In the study, researchers considered treating AD once the accumulation of ß-amyloid and P-tau that is caused by the virus occurred. They also tested the drug at the stage at which viral DNA replication occurs.

"If these proteins are produced independently of HSV1 replication, antivirals might not be effective," said Itzhaki, "We investigated this and found that treatment of HSV1-infected cells with acyclovir, the most commonly used antiviral agent, and also with two other antivirals, did indeed decrease the accumulation of ß-amyloid and P-tau, as well as decreasing HSV1 replication as we would expect."

The study underlies the explanation that HSV1 is a neurotropic virus that infects most humans. It is responsible for a number of diseases including herpes labialis (cold sores), herpes simplex encephalitis (HSE) and some cases of genital herpes.

"The next stage of our research -- subject to funding -- will focus on finding the most suitable antiviral agent -- or combination of two agents that operate via different mechanisms -- for use as treatment. We then need to investigate the way in which the virus and the genetic risk factor interact to cause the disease, as that might lead to further novel treatments," noted Itzhaki.

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Medicinal gel cuts herpes risk among women, study finds

Print   Email Font Resize By Donald G. McNeil Jr. New York Times Posted: 10/20/2011 10:56:30 PM PDTUpdated: 10/20/2011 11:31:25 PM PDT
A vaginal gel that sharply reduces a woman's risk of infection with HIV -- the virus that causes AIDS -- is even more effective against genital herpes, a much more common risk for young women in the United States, a new study has found.

The study, by researchers from the National Institutes of Health, Gilead Sciences and universities in Belgium and Italy, suggests that the microbicide gel, which was originally developed to fight AIDS in Africa, could lower the incidence of herpes in many women.

"This could be incredibly helpful," said Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo, a herpes expert from the University of Washington's medical school. "Protection that a woman can control is the holy grail in this field. It's hard for me to believe that something that protects against both HIV and herpes wouldn't be appealing to a lot of young American women."

An executive at Gilead, the company that makes tenofovir, the anti-AIDS drug that is the gel's active ingredient, said the company was debating whether to spend the millions of dollars needed to get the gel approved for the U.S. market. Even if the company pressed ahead immediately, "it would be three to four years before we were ready to submit data" to the Food and Drug Administration, said Norbert W. Bischofberger, Gilead's chief scientific officer.

Genital herpes is far more common than AIDS. The World Health Organization estimates that 20 percent of all sexually active adults have genital herpes. In

the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 21 percent of all sexually active women have it, including 16 percent of all white women and 48 percent of all black women.

While not fatal, the infection can be very painful, ruining sexual pleasure. The blisters it causes, which resemble the cold sores caused on the lips by a related virus, can also be an entryway for more dangerous pathogens, including HIV and syphilis.

It can be transmitted when neither partner has sores, and even using a condom is effective in preventing infection only half the time, said Dr. Anna Wald, a herpes specialist at the University of Washington's school of public health, because -- unlike HIV -- it can be transmitted by skin-to-skin contact, not just in semen or vaginal fluid.

And although it can often be controlled with another drug, acyclovir, herpes is not curable.

The new study, published online by Cell Host and Microbes this week, explains the surprise result of a much-heralded 2010 clinical trial done in South Africa.

That trial, run by Caprisa, an AIDS research center in Durban, showed for the first time that tenofovir gel protected women against HIV. But it also showed that the roughly 450 women in the survey who did not have herpes were even better protected against it than they were against HIV.

Overall, the gel reduced HIV infections by 39 percent. That announcement was greeted with a standing ovation by scientists at the international AIDS Conference in Vienna last year because it was the first weapon that women at risk of HIV infection could use without a man's knowledge.

In an unexpected bonus, the researchers also noted that it reduced herpes by 51 percent.

The new study, involving laboratory experiments, was done to explain why the trial worked, said Dr. Salim Abdool Karim, a professor of epidemiology at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa and Columbia University and one of the Caprisa trial leaders.

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