Liu Diqiu, Zhao Xiaoyang, Wang Xiaojun
State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Harbin Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150069, China.
Vet Sci. 2025 Mar 3;12(3):228. doi: 10.3390/vetsci12030228.
Equine herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1), EHV-4, EHV-8, and EHV-9, are classified within the subfamily and are recognized as causative agents of respiratory, urogenital, and neurological disorders in horses. These viruses, collectively referred to as αEHVs, exhibits both unique and shared characteristics in terms of host interaction, pathogenesis, epidemiology, and immune evasion, which arise from both the identities and discrepancies among respective genomic homologs. The genomic architecture of αEHVs is similar to other members of the same subfamily, such as well-known HSV-1, VZV, and PRV. However, research on the molecular mechanisms underlying αEHV infection and immune response remains significantly less advanced compared to studies on human, porcine, and bovine herpesviruses. This paper systematically describes the genomic structure, function, and genetic similarities of αEHVs and conducts a comparative analysis of selected αEHVs through pairwise sequence alignments of nucleotides and amino acids. This review offers an extensive synthesis of the current understanding related to the study of αEHVs, highlighting the challenges and potential solutions for future research endeavors.
马疱疹病毒1型（EHV-1）、EHV-4、EHV-8和EHV-9属于该亚科，被认为是马匹呼吸道、泌尿生殖道和神经系统疾病的病原体。这些病毒统称为αEHV，在宿主相互作用、发病机制、流行病学和免疫逃逸方面表现出独特和共有的特征，这些特征源于各自基因组同源物之间的异同。αEHV的基因组结构与同一亚科的其他成员相似，如著名的单纯疱疹病毒1型（HSV-1）、水痘带状疱疹病毒（VZV）和伪狂犬病病毒（PRV）。然而，与对人类、猪和牛疱疹病毒的研究相比，关于αEHV感染和免疫反应的分子机制的研究仍然明显滞后。本文系统地描述了αEHV的基因组结构、功能和遗传相似性，并通过核苷酸和氨基酸的成对序列比对，对选定的αEHV进行了比较分析。本综述广泛综合了目前对αEHV研究的认识，突出了未来研究工作面临的挑战和潜在解决方案。
