TY - JOUR
T1 - The alpha-herpesviruses
T2 - molecular pathfinders in nervous system circuits
AU - Ekstrand, Mats I.
AU - Enquist, L. W.
AU - Pomeranz, Lisa E.
N1 - Funding Information:
In this brief overview of a complex field, it was impossible to cite all the publications on α-herpesvirus neuroinvasion, neuronal infection and circuit tracing. We have resorted to selected reviews and papers to illustrate key findings as much as possible. We apologize to those colleagues whose work we did not cite. L.W.E. thanks his long time collaborator Pat Card for his continuing help, advice and encouragement. M.I.E. and L.E.P. wish to thank Jeffrey M. Friedman for his continued support. M.I.E. and L.E.P. are funded by NIH RO1 DA018799–03, with additional funding for M.I.E. from The Howard Hughes Medical Institute. This work is also supported by NIH R01 33506 and NCRR P40 RR01 18604 to L.W.E. and the Center for Behavioral Neuroscience Viral Tract Tracing Core at Georgia State University through the STC Program of the National Science Foundation under agreement No. IBN-9876754 to L.W.E. and Tim Bartness.
PY - 2008/3
Y1 - 2008/3
N2 - Several neuroinvasive viruses can be used to study the mammalian nervous system. In particular, infection by pseudorabies virus (PRV), an α-herpesvirus with broad host range, reveals chains of functionally connected neurons in the nervous systems of a variety of mammals. The specificity of PRV trans-neuronal spread has been established in several systems. One attenuated strain, PRV-Bartha, causes a reduced inflammatory response and also spreads only from infected post- to pre-synaptic neurons. We review the basics of PRV tracing and then discuss new developments and novel approaches that have enabled a more detailed understanding of the architecture of the nervous system. As questions and techniques evolve in the field of neuroscience, advances in PRV tracing will certainly follow.
AB - Several neuroinvasive viruses can be used to study the mammalian nervous system. In particular, infection by pseudorabies virus (PRV), an α-herpesvirus with broad host range, reveals chains of functionally connected neurons in the nervous systems of a variety of mammals. The specificity of PRV trans-neuronal spread has been established in several systems. One attenuated strain, PRV-Bartha, causes a reduced inflammatory response and also spreads only from infected post- to pre-synaptic neurons. We review the basics of PRV tracing and then discuss new developments and novel approaches that have enabled a more detailed understanding of the architecture of the nervous system. As questions and techniques evolve in the field of neuroscience, advances in PRV tracing will certainly follow.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.molmed.2007.12.008
DO - 10.1016/j.molmed.2007.12.008
M3 - Review article
C2 - 18280208
AN - SCOPUS:40649100493
SN - 1471-4914
VL - 14
SP - 134
EP - 140
JO - Trends in Molecular Medicine
JF - Trends in Molecular Medicine
IS - 3
ER -