Pillay Roxanne, Naidoo Pragalathan, Mkhize-Kwitshana Zilungile L
Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Mangosuthu University of Technology, Umlazi, South Africa.
Department of Medical Microbiology, College of Health Sciences, School of Laboratory Medicine & Medical Sciences, Nelson R. Mandela School of Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa.
Front Cell Infect Microbiol. 2024 Dec 4;14:1471411. doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2024.1471411. eCollection 2024.
Herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) and helminth infections are among the most widespread infectious diseases in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Helminths are known to modulate host immune responses and consequently impact the severity and outcomes of unrelated diseases, including allergies, autoimmune conditions, and infectious diseases. In this way, helminths may modulate essential immune responses against HSV-2 during co-infection and may alter susceptibility to and pathology of HSV-2. However, the epidemiology of STH/HSV-2 co-infections is understudied, and whether helminths influence the host immune response to HSV-2 is not well understood. In this perspective piece, we briefly examine the current knowledge on helminth immune modulation of important pathogens that are endemic to SSA, arguing that it is important to explore HSV-2 and helminth co-infections to elucidate potential interactions between HSV-2 and helminths. This is particularly relevant in SSA, where both pathogens are highly prevalent.
2型单纯疱疹病毒（HSV-2）和蠕虫感染是撒哈拉以南非洲（SSA）最普遍的传染病之一。已知蠕虫会调节宿主免疫反应，进而影响包括过敏、自身免疫性疾病和传染病在内的无关疾病的严重程度和结局。通过这种方式，蠕虫可能在共同感染期间调节针对HSV-2的关键免疫反应，并可能改变对HSV-2的易感性和病理状况。然而，土壤传播的蠕虫/HSV-2共同感染的流行病学研究不足，蠕虫是否影响宿主对HSV-2的免疫反应也尚未完全了解。在这篇观点文章中，我们简要审视了目前关于SSA地方流行的重要病原体的蠕虫免疫调节的知识，认为探索HSV-2和蠕虫共同感染以阐明HSV-2与蠕虫之间的潜在相互作用很重要。这在SSA尤为相关，因为这两种病原体在当地都高度流行。
