New Study Shows Herpes Infection Through the Nose Can Lead to Anxiety and Motor Impairment

According to a March 10 press release, a study from University of Illinois Chicago researchers found that herpes infection through the nose can lead to anxiety, motor impairment, and cognitive issues.

The press release says that this research is the first to show that, by exploiting a cellular enzyme, the virus can produce behavioral symptoms.

The press release said, “The research, published in mBio, is the latest from the College of Medicine group led by Deepak Shukla, the Marion H. Schenk Esq. Professor in Ophthalmology for Research of the Aging Eye and UIC professor of microbiology and immunology.”

Further, “Shukla’s laboratory previously studied how the virus spreads to the eye and brain and can lead to blindness, encephalitis and other conditions. The new research looked at intranasal infection, where viral particles enter the body through the nose and have more direct access to the nervous system.”

Shukla was quoted in the press release saying that, “If an infected individual is shedding virus via tears, it could reach the nasal cavity, where it could go more directly to the brain. I think it’s underdiagnosed and understudied, but the neurological consequences, we believe, are much more severe than you would normally see with fever blisters or ocular infection.”

The researchers observed high levels of inflammation and neuronal damage just days after HSV-1 infection in animal experiments. For several months after infected animals performed worse on tests of motor coordination and memory and exhibited more anxiety-like behavior when compared to controls. 

“The researchers also studied heparanase, a cellular enzyme the group previously studied for its role in HSV-1 reinfection and long-term effects,” the press release said. “Animals with a deactivated gene for heparanase did not show the same neurobehavioral deficits after infection as control animals. That suggests the enzyme mediates some of the virus’ damaging effects in the brain.”