Abstract
Nonhuman primates are widely used in biomedical research because of their genetic, anatomic, and physiologic similarities to humans. In this setting, human contact directly with macaques or with their tissues and fluids sometimes occurs. Cercopithecine herpesvirus 1 (B virus), an alphaherpesvirus endemic in Asian macaques, is closely related to herpes simplex virus (HSV). Most macaques carry B virus without overt signs of disease. However, zoonotic infection with B virus in humans usually results in fatal encephalomyelitis or severe neurologic impairment. Although the incidence of human infection with B virus is low, a death rate of >70% before the availability of antiviral therapy makes this virus a serious zoonotic threat. Knowledge of the clinical signs and risk factors for human B-virus disease allows early initiation of antiviral therapy and prevents severe disease or death.
Highlights
Nonhuman primates are widely used in biomedical research because of their genetic, anatomic, and physiologic similarities to humans
The International Committee on the Taxonomy of Viruses uses the name Cercopithecine herpesvirus 1. This designation is based on virologic characteristics and serologic cross-reactivity with other members of the genus Simplexvirus, namely herpes simplex virus (HSV) type 1 (HSV-1), the causative agent of oral herpetic ulcers in humans and HSV type 2 (HSV-2), the agent of human genital herpes [3]
Severe HSV disease is commonly observed in humans co-infected with HIV, no cases of B-virus disease associated with simian immunodeficiency virus infection in macaques have been reported [24]
Summary
Nonhuman primates are widely used in biomedical research because of their genetic, anatomic, and physiologic similarities to humans. Discovery of B Virus The first documented case of human B-virus infection occurred in 1932 when a researcher (patient W.B.) was bitten on the hand by an apparently healthy rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta) and died of progressive encephalomyelitis 15 days later. Where the species of macaque is noted, cases of human B-virus infection have all been associated with direct or indirect exposure to rhesus macaques [14,15,16,17,18,19].
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