Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41901772›Full record

ReviewPathogens (Basel, Switzerland)2026

Host Immune Response Mechanisms Against Herpes Simplex Virus Type 2 Infection.

Yongming Mei, Hong Teng, Jianbin Wang

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Yongming MeiThe Public Experimental Center of Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, 149 Dalian Road, Huichuan District, Zunyi 563003, China.
Hong TengThe Public Experimental Center of Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, 149 Dalian Road, Huichuan District, Zunyi 563003, China.
Jianbin WangThe Public Experimental Center of Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, 149 Dalian Road, Huichuan District, Zunyi 563003, China.

Funding

the National Natural Science Foundation of China 22566037the Science and Technology Foundation of Guizhou Province QKHJ-ZK[2023]560the Young Talent Training Project of the Science and Technology Bureau of Zunyi City ZSKHHZ-[2023]198
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) is the primary pathogen responsible for genital herpes. Predominantly transmitted via sexual contact, HSV-2 not only poses significant physical and psychological burdens on infected individuals but also substantially elevates the risk of HIV acquisition and represents a potentially fatal threat to newborns. Following primary infection, HSV-2 establishes lifelong latent infection within the sacral ganglia. Currently, there are no vaccines or therapeutics capable of eradicating this latent virus reservoir or effectively preventing initial infection. The core impediment to developing such interventions lies in the incomplete elucidation of the protective immune mechanisms against HSV-2 and its precise molecular pathogenesis. The host immune response against HSV-2 hinges critically on the coordinated interplay between innate and adaptive immunity. The innate immune system, serving as the first line of defense, acts to curtail early viral replication and initiate adaptive responses. This is achieved through mechanisms, including the genital mucosal barrier, activation of Toll-like receptors (TLRs), the cGAS-STING signaling pathway, interferon (IFN)-mediated antiviral effector functions, and activation of innate immune cells such as natural killer (NK) cells and dendritic cells (DCs). Crucially, however, HSV-2 counteracts these host defenses by expressing immune modulatory proteins (e.g., ICP0, ICP27, ICP35) that target key host antiviral signaling pathways, thereby affecting immune evasion. Within the adaptive immune response, neutralizing antibodies generated by the humoral immunity can provide localized protection at mucosal sites, but their protective efficacy is limited due to sophisticated viral immune evasion mechanisms. Cellular immunity, particularly mediated by CD4+ T cells, constitutes the core mechanism for viral clearance and suppression of recurrent outbreaks. Notably, tissue-resident memory T cells (TRMs) play a pivotal role in controlling the reactivation of latent HSV-2 within the ganglia. This review integrates current research advances to delineate the innate and adaptive immune mechanisms engaged during HSV-2 infection from the perspective of the dynamic host-virus interplay, with an ultimate aim to provide a theoretical foundation informing the rational development of preventive vaccines and therapeutic agents against HSV-2.

Indexed as

Herpes GenitalisHerpesvirus 2, HumanHost-Pathogen InteractionsAdaptive ImmunityAnimalsHumansImmune EvasionImmunity, InnateSignal TransductionVirus Latencyadaptive immunityherpes simplex virus type 2immune evasioninnate immunitylatent infection

Identifiers

PMID41901772
PMCPMC13029312

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.