A new microplate neutralization test for typing of herpes simplex virus

Area of Science:

• Virology
• Immunology

Background:

• Herpes simplex virus (HSV) typing is crucial for diagnosis and treatment.
• Existing methods for HSV typing can be complex and time-consuming.

Purpose of the Study:

• To establish a simplified microplate serum neutralization test for estimating complement-requiring neutralizing (CRN) antibody.
• To develop a more efficient method for typing herpes simplex virus (HSV).

Main Methods:

• A microplate serum neutralization test was developed using CRN antibodies.
• Guinea pig sera immunized with HSV type 2 were used to differentiate HSV types.
• Serial 10-fold dilutions of virus were tested with selected guinea pig sera and complement.

Main Results:

• Guinea pig sera effectively differentiated between HSV type 1 and type 2, showing lower cross-reactivity than rabbit antisera.
• The microplate CRN antibody test accurately typed HSV strains, including fresh isolates.
• Results correlated well with a modified Yang et al. method, outperforming chick embryo cell plaquing for type 1 identification.

Conclusions:

• The developed microplate serum neutralization test provides a simplified and effective method for HSV typing.
• This technique utilizes CRN antibodies and optimized guinea pig sera for reliable viral identification.
• The method offers an improvement over existing techniques, particularly for distinguishing HSV type 1.