title: Recent developments in animal models for human herpesvirus 6A and 6B.
abstract: Progress in the identification of suitable animal models for human herpesvirus (HHV)-6A and HHV-6B infections has been slow. Recently, new models have been established, mainly for HHV-6A, which reproduce some pathological features seen in humans. Neuroinflammatory signs were observed in infected marmosets and CD46-transgenic mice; although viral replication was not prominent, persistence of viral DNA and specific immunologic responses were detected, suggesting an immune-mediated pathogenic mechanism. Pig-tailed macaques showed robust viral replication concomitant with acute-phase symptoms, and provided a model to study the effects of HHV-6A on AIDS progression. In humanized mice, viral replication was less evident, but infection led to T-cell alterations. Altogether, these recent developments have opened new perspectives for studying the pathogenic role of HHV-6A in humans.
authors.affiliation: CIRI, International Center for Infectiology Research, France; Inserm, U1111, Lyon, France; CNRS, UMR5308, Lyon, France; Université Lyon 1, Lyon, France; Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, Lyon, France.
authors.forename: Branka
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Horvat
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Molecular Biology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602, USA.
authors.forename: Bradford K
authors.initials: BK
authors.lastname: Berges
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Immunoregulation, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA. Electronic address: plusso@niaid.nih.gov.
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lusso
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D030801:Animals, Genetically Modified; D002144:Callithrix; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D015654:Herpesvirus 6, Human / Q000254:growth & development / Q000276:immunology / Q000472:pathogenicity / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008251:Macaca; D008254:Macaca nemestrina; D016513:Mice, SCID; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D019349:Roseolovirus Infections / Q000473:pathology* / Q000821:virology*