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Porcine Corneal Tissue Explant to Study the Efficacy of Herpes Simplex Virus-1 Antivirals
Published on: September 20, 2021
Internal catalase protects herpes simplex virus from inactivation by hydrogen peroxide
William W Newcomb1, Jay C Brown
1Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Cancer Biology, University of Virginia Health System, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA.
Abstract:
Herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) was shown to contain catalase, an enzyme able to detoxify hydrogen peroxide by converting it to water and oxygen. Studies with a catalase inhibitor indicated that virus-associated catalase can have a role in protecting the virus from oxidative inactivation. HSV-1 was found to be more sensitive to killing by hydrogen peroxide in the presence of a catalase inhibitor than in its absence. The results suggest a protective role for catalase during the time HSV-1 spends in the oxidizing environment outside a host cell.
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