New evidence for a link between herpes simplex (aphtha) and neurodegenerative diseases

A new study conducted by researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago (University of Illinois Chicago) shows that when optic neuroprotein (OPTN) is present in cells, it can limit the spread of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1)
.

Dr.
Deepak Shukla, Professor of Ophthalmology Research at Marion H.
Schenk Esq, said that in a "first of its kind" study, researchers also found neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
(ALS), the potential direct link between glaucoma and herpes virus
.

Shukla led by the research paper "OPTN is inherent resistance of host nerve invasion HSV-1 infected limiting factor," recently published in " Nature Communications on" magazine
.

Researchers are trying to find out why HSV-1 is fatal for people with weakened immune functions, but not for healthy people
.
The herpes virus naturally infects the central nervous system and can cause degenerative brain and eye diseases, as well as encephalitis

This new study reveals the reason why HSV-1 is inhibited: OPTN is a conserved autophagy receptor that selectively targets HSV-1 protein for degradation through autophagy.
Tejabiram Yadavalli, visiting scholar in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, UIC Explained
.

Shukla said: "OPTN prevents virus growth through autophagy, which engulfed virus particles in vesicles called autophagosomes
.
The autophagy that occurs is very selective

The researchers believe that the results of this study will be applicable to all eight different human herpes viruses

In this study, mice with the OPTN gene removed were infected with ocular HSV-1
.
This virus grows faster in the brains of animals without OPTN, killing local neurons, and ultimately leading to the death of the animal

Shukla said: "If you have mutated OPTN plus herpes, you may cause disaster in neurodegeneration
.
"

Chandrashekhar Patil, a visiting scholar in UIC's Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, said: "This study also shows that when OPTN is lacking, the immune response is impaired.

OPTN needs to send a signal to indicate that there is proper immune cell influx at the site of infection
.
Without OPTN, There is a problem

Some of these problems may include neurodegenerative diseases, and researchers believe that further studies may prove this

Shukla said: "We think we will have data showing that other viruses, such as Epstein-Barr, Kaposi's sarcoma, and varicella-zoster, will all share this mechanism because they share homologous proteins
.
"

Because the herpes virus always exists in neurons, some people speculate that it is related to neurodegenerative diseases
.
Dr.
Tibor Valyi Nagy, professor of pathology, director of UIC neuropathology, and co-author of the study, said that the immune system needs inflammation to constantly resist the virus, and neurons will also be damaged to a certain extent due to this continuous immune response

The study also showed that animals without OPTN and infected with HSV-1 lost the ability to recognize objects after 30 days
.
Shukla said this may indicate that mutations in the HSV-1 and OPTN genes can accelerate neuronal damage, which can lead to cognitive impairment

"Part of our translational research can be how we can correct the OPTN problem so that we don't have neurodegenerative problems," Shukla said
.