Restriction endonuclease analysis of DNA from genital isolates of herpes simplex virus type 2

High-resolution restriction endonuclease analysis of DNA from multiple herpes simplex virus type 2 isolates from 30 patients at a single clinical center has indicated that herpes simplex virus type 2 DNA sequences are highly conserved. However, the use of six endonucleases, EcoRI, BglII, HindIII, KpnI, BamHI, and SstI, established that each patient was infected by a unique virus. Comparison of virus isolates from the same patient show that the most sequence variation occurred in the terminal and subterminal BamHI fragments. The results suggest that each individual may induce specific variation in the herpes simplex virus type 2 genome and that the results of epidemiological studies based on restriction endonuclease analyses of herpes simplex virus type 2 DNA must be interpreted with care.