Salivary neutralizing activity against herpes simplex virus type 1

Samples of saliva collected from 40 patients, of whom 16 had a previous clinical history of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) infection, were concentrated and sterilized. Salivary neutralizing activity, as measured by a plaque-reduction method, was found in 62% of those patients with a history of oral lesions. Studies with antisera to human immunoglobulin indicated that the IgG class of immunoglobulin was a major HSV-1-neutralizing component of both saliva and serum.