Varicella Zoster: Virus and Disease

Varicella zoster virus (VZV), also known as human herpes virus 3 (HHV3), causes varicella (chicken pox) upon primary infection, establishes latency in dorsal root ganglia (DRG) and can later reactivate to cause herpes zoster (shingles). Difficulties in studying the pathogenesis of VZV; because of its high cell association and narrow host range, have been overcome through the development of the VZV severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) mouse model carrying human tissue implants. VZV is the first human herpes virus for which a live attenuated vaccine has been developed.

Keywords: varicella zoster virus; herpes zoster; shingles; chickenpox; human herpes virus 3

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    Hambleton S (2005) Chickenpox. Current Opinion in Infectious Diseases 18: 235–240.
    Hambleton S, Gershon MD and Gershon AA (2004) The role of the trans-Golgi network in Varicella zoster virus biology. Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences 61: 3047–3056.
    Oxman MN, Levin MJ, Johnson GR et al. (2005) A vaccine to prevent herpes zoster and postherpetic neuralgia in older adults. New England Journal of Medicine 352: 2271–2284.
    Sengupta N, Booy R, Schmitt HJ et al. (2007) Varicella vaccination in Europe: are we ready for a universal childhood programme? European Journal of Paediatrics 167: 47–55.
    Weaver BA (2007) The burden of herpes zoster and postherpetic neuralgia in the United States. The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association 107: S2–S7.
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McDonald, Suzanna LR, and Breuer, Judith(Jul 2008) Varicella Zoster: Virus and Disease. In: eLS. John Wiley & Sons Ltd, Chichester. http://www.els.net [doi: 10.1002/9780470015902.a0020715]