Vaccination against murine gamma-herpesvirus infection

The gamma-herpesviruses establish life-long latency in the host and are important human pathogens. T cells play a major role in controlling the initial acute infection and subsequently maintaining the virus in a quiescent state. However, the nature of the T-cell response to gamma-herpesvirus infection and the requirements for effective vaccination are poorly understood. The recent development of a murine gamma-herpesvirus (murine herpesvirus-68 [MHV-68]) has made it possible to analyze T-cell responses and test vaccination strategies in a small animal model. Intranasal infection with MHV-68 induces an acute infection in the lung and the subsequent establishment of long-term latency, which is associated with splenomegaly and an infectious mononucleosis-like syndrome. Here we review the T-cell response to different phases of the infection and the impact of vaccination against either lytic-cycle, or latency-associated T-cell epitopes.