The Evolutionary Origins of Herpes: Virus Infected Humans Before They Were Human

Scientists have uncovered the evolutionary origins of human herpes: chimpanzees. (Photo : Flickr)

Scientists have uncovered the evolutionary origins of human herpes: chimpanzees. It turns out that the human herpes simplex virus (HSV) -1 and -2 infected hominids before their evolutionary split from chimps about 6 million years ago and jumped from chimpanzees to our ancient ancestors about 1.6 million years ago.

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About two-thirds of the human population is infected with at least one herpes simplex virus. This virus is commonly presented as cold sores on the mouth or lips or blisters on the genitals. In fact, humans are the only primates that have two herpes simplex viruses.

In order to learn more about the herpes virus, the researchers compared the HSV-1 and HSV-2 gene sequences to the family tree of simplex viruses from eight monkey and ape host species. They used advanced models of molecular evolution to estimate ancient viral divergence times. This allowed them to determine when HSV-1 and HSV-2 were introduced into humans.

"The results help us to better understand how these viruses evolved and found their way into humans," said Joel Wertheim, one of the researchers, in a news release. "Animal disease reservoirs are extremely important for global public health. Understanding where our viruses come from will help guide us in preventing future viruses from making the jump into humans."

In the end, the researchers found that HSV-2 was far more genetically similar to the herpes virus found in chimpanzees. This seemed to indicate that humans must have acquired it from an ancestor of modern chimps about 1.6 million years ago, prior to the rise of modern humans about 200,000 years ago. In contrast, HSV-1 has been present in humans for far longer.

"Comparing virus gene sequences gives us insight into viral pathogens that have been infecting us since before we were humans," said Wertheim in a news release.

The findings are published in the journal Molecular Biology and Evolution.

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Herpes infected humans before they were human

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have identified the evolutionary origins of human herpes simplex virus (HSV) -1 and -2, reporting that the former infected hominids before their evolutionary split from chimpanzees 6 million years ago while the latter jumped from ancient chimpanzees to ancestors of modern humans -- Homo erectus -- approximately 1.6 million years ago.

The findings are published in the June 10 online issue of Molecular Biology and Evolution.

"The results help us to better understand how these viruses evolved and found their way into humans," said Joel O. Wertheim, PhD, assistant research scientist at the UC San Diego AntiViral Research Center and lead author of the study. "Animal disease reservoirs are extremely important for global public health. Understanding where our viruses come from will help guide us in preventing future viruses from making the jump into humans."

Approximately two-thirds of the human population is infected with at least one herpes simplex virus. The viruses are most commonly presented as cold sores on the mouth or lips or blisters on the genitals.

"Humans are the only primates we know of that have two herpes simplex viruses," said Wertheim. "We wanted to determine why."

The researchers compared the HSV-1 and HSV-2 gene sequences to the family tree of simplex viruses from eight monkey and ape host species. Using advanced models of molecular evolution, the scientists were able to more accurately estimate ancient viral divergence times. This approach allowed them to determine when HSV-1 and HSV-2 were introduced into humans with far more precision than standard models that do not account for natural selection over the course of viral evolution.

The genetics of human and primate herpes viruses were examined to assess their similarity. It became clear that HSV-1 has been present in humans far longer than HSV-2, prompting the researchers to further investigate the origins of HSV-2 in humans.

The viral family tree showed that HSV-2 was far more genetically similar to the herpes virus found in chimpanzees. This level of divergence indicated that humans must have acquired HSV-2 from an ancestor of modern chimpanzees about 1.6 million years ago, prior to the rise of modern humans roughly 200,000 years ago.

"Comparing virus gene sequences gives us insight into viral pathogens that have been infecting us since before we were humans," said Wertheim.

Co-authors include Martin D. Smith and Sergei L. Kosakovsky Pond, UC San Diego; Davey M. Smith, UC San Diego and Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System; Konrad Scheffler, UC San Diego and Stellenbosch University, South Africa.

Funding for this research came from the University of California Laboratory Fees Research Program (grant 12-LR-236617), the National Institutes of Health (grants DA034978 and GM093939), the Bioinformatics and Information Technologies Core of the UC San Diego Center for AIDS Research (P30 AI036214), and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

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Herpes Virus Infected Humans Before Evolution: Study

chimpanzee (Wikimedia Commons/Kabir Bakie)

Scientists have discovered the evolutionary origins of human herpes: chimpanzees. Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have found the evolutionary origins of human herpes simplex virus (HSV) -1 and -2. They found that HSV-1 infected hominids before their evolutionary split from chimpanzees about 6 million years ago, while HSV 2 jumped from primitive chimpanzees to ancestors of present humans about 1.6 million years ago.

"The results help us to better understand how these viruses evolved and found their way into humans. Animal disease reservoirs are extremely important for global public health. Understanding where our viruses come from will help guide us in preventing future viruses from making the jump into humans." said Joel O. Wertheim, PhD, assistant research scientist at the UC San Diego AntiViral Research Center and lead author of the study, in a news release.

Herpes simplex virus has infected about two-thirds of the human population. The virus commonly affects as cold sores on the mouth or as blisters on the genitals. It has been found that humans are the only primates infected by two herpes simplex viruses.

Researchers, in order to learn more about the virus, compared both herpes virus 1 and 2 genes sequence to simplex viruses from eight ape and monkey host species. With the use of advanced molecular evolution models, the researchers estimated the viral divergence among ancient and modern animals. This technique allowed them to find out when HSV-1 and HSV-2 were first introduced into humans.

"The results help us to better understand how these viruses evolved and found their way into humans. Animal disease reservoirs are extremely important for global public health. Understanding where our viruses come from will help guide us in preventing future viruses from making the jump into humans." said Joel Wertheim, one of the researchers.

The researcher concluded that HSV-2 was more genetically related to the herpes virus found in chimpanzees. This discovery indicated that humans must have acquired HSV 2 from a modern chimp ancestor around 1.6 million years ago, prior to the evolution of modern humans around 200,000 years ago. On the contrary, HSV-1 has been present in humans for far longer.

"Comparing virus gene sequences gives us insight into viral pathogens that have been infecting us since before we were humans," Wertheim added.

View the original article here

Revealing fever blisters (dental herpes HSV-1) to potential partners before kissing?

This can be a question raised a great deal around the Herpes Chance forums.

“Should I / How do you disclose which i get fever blisters to potential partners before kissing them?”

The solution could be a confusing one, due to the fact it’s as much as the person on what’s right or otherwise. And there's been an excellent debate around the forum before about this, and lately another question about this subject continues to be tossed in to the ring …

So let’s enter into this a little much deeper, we could?

“If 80% of individuals have fever blisters, whose responsibility could it be to create up? Individuals who've it or individuals who don’t?”

The main reason this conversation is a little difficult to pin lower happens because if this involves dental herpes (HSV-1) particularly, 80% of People in america 14-49 years of age get it. Now that’s a Huge most of people, is it not? We’re not only speaking a measly barely-tipping-the-scales 51% majority or anything. So thinking about this statistic, that will the responsibility to create in the subject fall? (Inside a perfect world, all of us could be speaking about every facet of our sexual and intimate histories with one another prior to getting intimate, however that ain’t the planet we reside in.)

Here’s a different way to think about this without herpes particularly because the subject … Here’s the scenario: Eight from 10 individuals an area are sick using the influenza. All 10 people know before entering the area that 80% of those for the reason that room are sick using the flu. Which group ought to be covering their mouths? The 8 those who are sick or even the 2 individuals who aren’t? You’ll find individuals to argue either point. What it really comes lower to is that this: Exactly what does your integrity let you know to complete thinking about the conditions? Can you feel guilty should you kissed someone without letting them know you've dental herpes (fever blisters)?

My own opinion is we simply possess the conversation, no matter whether herpes is around the mouth or genital area. It’s still an chance with an important conversation and worry about another person's health. Let's suppose before we even kissed, a nonchalant “Hey, just FYI I recieve fever blisters — much like 80% people — and merely wanted to show you. Would you get fever blisters?” Doesn’t need to be a dealbreaker-feeling conversation. No shame. No guilt. No weirdness. Only a simple conversation about herpes. No biggie. That’s the planet I wish to reside in. Where everybody can talk freely about something simple like herpes therefore it can open the doorway to much deeper conversations and much deeper connection.

What exactly do you consider? Get more information at the publish if you would like to participate in around the discussion.

“Yeah, but how about ‘down there’? Ahem, (dental sex) …”

This can lead to the apparent next question that’s requested … how about herpes and dental sex? The thing is, this is when this discussion will get fascinating (so far as I’m concerned). Why? Because let's say someone has herpes from the HSV-1 variety (discover the variations between HSV-1 and HSV-2) as well as their partner goes lower in it (following a proper herpes talk, obviously), then why is the potential for passing HSV-1 to that particular person’s mouth different than passing it for their mouth for those who have dental herpes and hug them? The finish result is identical: HSV-1 is passed for their mouth (in conclusion, which 80% of People in america age range 14-49 have). [Sidenote: You will find also lots of questions regarding receiving dental sex if you have HSV-2 there's under singlePercent possibility of passing genital HSV-2 for your partner.]

This confusing double standard between no shame in dental herpes, but mucho shame in herpes is proof positive in my experience our culture includes a severe sexual shaming problem. The truth that we obtain something through kissing does not have any stigma, but when we obtain something through indicating inside us an intimate manner, we may want to consider shaming our natural urges? Bull honkey. Yeah, I stated it. Bull honkey. Time for you to understand that sex is really a natural, beautiful factor. No shame goes in sex. So how can we change it? With ourselves first. Accept yourself with herpes. Disclose with self-acceptance and integrity. The stigma will change, I promise you. Begin right now.

View the original article here

Why a herpes cure wouldn’t have helped me before now

Guest author from our community: Beckie

For years, I found ways to deny that I have herpes. My first herpes outbreak was brutal and traumatic, but after that, I never had another herpes outbreak. At the time of the onset, I was in a committed relationship with a supportive partner. And because I wasn’t having any outbreaks to remind me I had herpes, I did a very good job of forgetting about it. And even when I did feel occasional tingling, itching or discomfort, my mind didn’t immediately think it was related to herpes prodrome symptoms — I just brushed it off as nothing.

“I  believe I’m going to be able to heal now … because I dealt with the root issue …”

So yeah, on one hand the herpes was manageable for me and I was able to move on fairly quickly from it. But on the other hand, I’d had a huge amount of emotion triggered with the herpes diagnosis, and instead of dealing with it, I shoved it back down into my body. I couldn’t deal with it. It was too heavy. Too painful. I wasn’t strong enough yet. And I can have compassion for myself about this — it was a mountain of baggage.

Nevertheless, because I wasn’t dealing with my mountain of shame through having herpes, my body needed another outlet. So guess what? My inherited varicose veins started getting worse. Despite the fact I was losing weight and eating healthier than I’ve ever eaten. Interesting, right? Sure, science would say they’re genetic and inevitably would get worse over time, but I don’t really buy that. Something within my mind/body was causing them to get worse within this time frame. And for me, they were absolutely a trigger for shame. Every message I ever took in from society taught me they’re unsightly, disgusting and should be hidden (sound familiar?).

From my place of reflection today, I find it just too coincidental that the varicose veins started to get noticeably worse around this time. It was like my body said, “Damn. She’s not dealing with the shame through the herpes. Well, let’s make the veins worse and see if she’ll process some of that shame and self-loathing now.” Fascinating. What’s strengthened this theory is the fact that once I really started to deal with the shame through joining the herpes support forums, talking with Adrial, writing the blog about curing herpes shame and doing the herpes interview video, I experienced a shift in my perception of my veins.

I started tapping into some awesome self-love, and began to see my legs through a different lens – with love and compassion instead of shame and self-loathing. Think about it: my body didn’t manifest cancer or diabetes or something else that gets compassion from society. Nope, when I didn’t deal with the herpes, my mind and body manifested shameful varicose veins. I had to start dealing with my deeply layered shame that was building up like a pressure cooker. That emotion had to go somewhere.

So now that I’m on the other side of all this, here’s my whacky idea: Because I’ve finally dealt with the majority of my shame, guilt, self-loathing and self-doubt through tackling the herpes, my belief is that my body isn’t going to need to process it through my vascular system anymore. I can finally handle my emotions and process them gently and easily. I don’t need to bury them, meaning my body doesn’t have to find a way to deal with it physically.

Call me crazy, but I really do believe I’m going to be able to heal my veins now. Because I dealt with the root issue that was creating them. I got the lesson. No proof yet, but I’ll keep you posted! Oh yeah, and the scientists in Vaccine-land can come out with a herpes cure now. Thanks for waiting for me. I’m ready now.

Much love,
Beckie

View the original article here

Disclosing cold sores (oral herpes HSV-1) to potential partners before kissing?

This is a question brought up a lot on the Herpes Opportunity forums.

“Should I / How do I disclose that I get cold sores to potential partners before kissing them?”

The answer can be a confusing one, simply because it’s up to the individual on what’s right or not. And there has been a great debate on the forum before about it, and recently another question on this topic has been thrown into the ring …

So let’s get into this question a bit deeper, shall we?

“If 80% of people have cold sores, whose responsibility is it to bring it up? Those who have it or those who don’t?”

The reason this conversation is a bit hard to pin down is because when it comes to oral herpes (HSV-1) specifically, 80% of Americans 14-49 years old have it. Now that’s a VAST majority of people, isn’t it? We’re not just talking a measly barely-tipping-the-scales 51% majority or anything. So considering this statistic, with whom does the responsibility to bring up the topic fall? (In a perfect world, we all would be talking about every aspect of our sexual and intimate histories with each other before getting intimate, but that ain’t the world we live in.)

Here’s another way to think of this without herpes specifically as the topic … Here’s the scenario: Eight out of 10 people in a room are sick with the flu virus. All 10 people know before walking into the room that 80% of the people in that room are sick with the flu. Which group should be covering their mouths? The 8 people who are sick or the 2 people who aren’t? You’ll find people to argue either point. What it comes down to is this: What does your integrity tell you to do considering the circumstances? Would you feel guilty if you kissed someone without telling them you have oral herpes (cold sores)?

My personal opinion is we just have the conversation, regardless of whether or not herpes is on the mouth or genitals. It’s still an opportunity to have an important conversation and care about someone else’s health. Imagine if before we even kissed, a nonchalant “Hey, just FYI I get cold sores — just like 80% of us — and just wanted to let you know. Do you get cold sores?” Doesn’t have to be a dealbreaker-feeling conversation. No shame. No guilt. No weirdness. Just a simple conversation about herpes. No biggie. That’s the world I want to live in. Where everyone can talk openly about something simple like herpes so it can open the door to deeper conversations and deeper connection.

So what do YOU think? Click here for the post if you’d like to join in on the discussion.

“Yeah, but what about ‘down there’? Ahem, (oral sex) …”

This leads to the obvious next question that’s asked … what about herpes and oral sex? You see, this is where this discussion gets fascinating (as far as I’m concerned). Why? Because what if someone has genital herpes of the HSV-1 variety (read about the differences between HSV-1 and HSV-2) and their partner goes down on them (after a proper herpes talk, of course), then what makes the potential of passing HSV-1 to that person’s mouth any different than passing it to their mouth if you have oral herpes and kiss them? The end result is the same: HSV-1 is passed to their mouth (to recap, which 80% of Americans ages 14-49 have). [Sidenote: There are also a lot of questions about receiving oral sex when you have HSV-2; there is less than a 1% chance of passing genital HSV-2 to your partner.]

This confusing double standard between no shame in oral herpes, but mucho shame in genital herpes is proof positive to me that our culture has a severe sexual shaming problem. The fact that we get something through kissing doesn’t have any stigma, but if we get something through expressing ourselves in a sexual manner, we might want to consider shaming our natural urges? Bull honkey. Yeah, I said it. Bull honkey. Time to realize that sex is a natural, beautiful thing. No shame belongs in sex. So how do we shift it? With ourselves first. Accept yourself with herpes. Disclose with self-acceptance and integrity. The stigma will shift, I promise you. Start now.

View the original article here

Why a herpes cure wouldn’t have helped me before now

Guest author from our community: Beckie

For years, I found ways to deny that I have herpes. My first herpes outbreak was brutal and traumatic, but after that, I never had another herpes outbreak. At the time of the onset, I was in a committed relationship with a supportive partner. And because I wasn’t having any outbreaks to remind me I had herpes, I did a very good job of forgetting about it. And even when I did feel occasional tingling, itching or discomfort, my mind didn’t immediately think it was related to herpes prodrome symptoms — I just brushed it off as nothing.

“I  believe I’m going to be able to heal now … because I dealt with the root issue …”

So yeah, on one hand the herpes was manageable for me and I was able to move on fairly quickly from it. But on the other hand, I’d had a huge amount of emotion triggered with the herpes diagnosis, and instead of dealing with it, I shoved it back down into my body. I couldn’t deal with it. It was too heavy. Too painful. I wasn’t strong enough yet. And I can have compassion for myself about this — it was a mountain of baggage.

Nevertheless, because I wasn’t dealing with my mountain of shame through having herpes, my body needed another outlet. So guess what? My inherited varicose veins started getting worse. Despite the fact I was losing weight and eating healthier than I’ve ever eaten. Interesting, right? Sure, science would say they’re genetic and inevitably would get worse over time, but I don’t really buy that. Something within my mind/body was causing them to get worse within this time frame. And for me, they were absolutely a trigger for shame. Every message I ever took in from society taught me they’re unsightly, disgusting and should be hidden (sound familiar?).

From my place of reflection today, I find it just too coincidental that the varicose veins started to get noticeably worse around this time. It was like my body said, “Damn. She’s not dealing with the shame through the herpes. Well, let’s make the veins worse and see if she’ll process some of that shame and self-loathing now.” Fascinating. What’s strengthened this theory is the fact that once I really started to deal with the shame through joining the herpes support forums, talking with Adrial, writing the blog about curing herpes shame and doing the herpes interview video, I experienced a shift in my perception of my veins.

I started tapping into some awesome self-love, and began to see my legs through a different lens – with love and compassion instead of shame and self-loathing. Think about it: my body didn’t manifest cancer or diabetes or something else that gets compassion from society. Nope, when I didn’t deal with the herpes, my mind and body manifested shameful varicose veins. I had to start dealing with my deeply layered shame that was building up like a pressure cooker. That emotion had to go somewhere.

So now that I’m on the other side of all this, here’s my whacky idea: Because I’ve finally dealt with the majority of my shame, guilt, self-loathing and self-doubt through tackling the herpes, my belief is that my body isn’t going to need to process it through my vascular system anymore. I can finally handle my emotions and process them gently and easily. I don’t need to bury them, meaning my body doesn’t have to find a way to deal with it physically.

Call me crazy, but I really do believe I’m going to be able to heal my veins now. Because I dealt with the root issue that was creating them. I got the lesson. No proof yet, but I’ll keep you posted! Oh yeah, and the scientists in Vaccine-land can come out with a herpes cure now. Thanks for waiting for me. I’m ready now.

Much love,
Beckie

View the original article here