ArticlePLoS pathogens2015
An in vitro model of latency and reactivation of varicella zoster virus in human stem cell-derived neurons.
Article in PLoS pathogens, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 55 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
55 citing papers in PubMed, 79 citations in OpenAlex.
- Low-Level Light Therapy in Postherpetic Neuralgia: A Review of Mechanistic Insights and Clinical Implications.Cellular and molecular neurobiology · 2026Review
- Varicella zoster virus and the central nervous system.Nature reviews. Microbiology · 2026Review
- Translating Pharmacology from Animal Models to Organoids: Advancing Predictive Human Biology in Drug Discovery.Stem cell reviews and reports · 2026Review
- A human sensory neuron model for varicella-zoster virus latency and reactivationbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Biological relevance ofMicrobiology and molecular biology reviews : MMBR · 2025Review
- Repression of varicella zoster virus gene expression during quiescent infection in the absence of detectable histone deposition.PLoS pathogens · 2025Article
- Differentiation of Human Neurons and Neuron-Like Cells to Study VZV Neuronal Infection.Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2025Article
- Association Between Climatic Factors and Varicella Incidence in Wuxi, East China, 2010-2019: Surveillance Study.JMIR public health and surveillance · 2024Article
- Organoids: development and applications in disease models, drug discovery, precision medicine, and regenerative medicine.MedComm · 2024Review
- Varicella-zoster virus recapitulates its immune evasive behaviour in matured hiPSC-derived neurospheroids.Frontiers in immunology · 2024Article
- Article
- Lack of strong innate immune reactivity renders macrophages alone unable to control productive Varicella-Zoster Virus infection in an isogenic human iPSC-derived neuronal co-culture model.Frontiers in immunology · 2023Article
- Article
- A Single Herpes Simplex Virus 1 Genome Reactivates from Individual Cells.Microbiology spectrum · 2022Article
- Article
- A Human Stem Cell-Derived Neurosensory-Epithelial Circuitry on a Chip to Model Herpes Simplex Virus Reactivation.Biomedicines · 2022Article
- Review
- Studies of Infection and Experimental Reactivation by Recombinant VZV with Mutations in Virally-Encoded Small Non-Coding RNA.Viruses · 2022Article
- Review
- Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Varicella zoster virus (VZV) latency in sensory and autonomic neurons has remained enigmatic and difficult to study, and experimental reactivation has not yet been achieved. We have previously shown that human embryonic stem cell (hESC)-derived neurons are permissive to a productive and spreading VZV infection. We now demonstrate that hESC-derived neurons can also host a persistent non-productive infection lasting for weeks which can subsequently be reactivated by multiple experimental stimuli. Quiescent infections were established by exposing neurons to low titer cell-free VZV either by using acyclovir or by infection of axons in compartmented microfluidic chambers without acyclovir. VZV DNA and low levels of viral transcription were detectable by qPCR for up to seven weeks. Quiescently-infected human neuronal cultures were induced to undergo renewed viral gene and protein expression by growth factor removal or by inhibition of PI3-Kinase activity. Strikingly, incubation of cultures induced to reactivate at a lower temperature (34°C) resulted in enhanced VZV reactivation, resulting in spreading, productive infections. Comparison of VZV genome transcription in quiescently-infected to productively-infected neurons using RNASeq revealed preferential transcription from specific genome regions, especially the duplicated regions. These experiments establish a powerful new system for modeling the VZV latent state, and reveal a potential role for temperature in VZV reactivation and disease.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.