T Lymphocytes in Genital Lymph Nodes Protect Mice from Intravaginal Infection with Herpes Simplex Virus Type 2

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Abstract
Herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2)is a human venereal pathogen that causes lethal neurological illness after intravaginal inoculation into BALB/cJ mice. Intravaginal vaccination of mice with an attenuated strain of HSV-2 rapidly induces immunity to a lethal intravaginal challenge with wild-type HSV-2. This resistance is transferrable to syngeneic mice with genital lymph node (GLN) cells but not with cells from other lymphoid sources. Here we demonstrate that minimal numbers of HSV-2-stimulated GLN T lymphocytes are required for resistance to genital infection by HSV-2 and that such cells migrate preferentially into HSV-2-infected genital tissue. Furthermore, the results suggest that HSV2-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes from the GLN may be one effector cell population participating locally in genital immunity to the virus. These findings indicate that mucosal immunity to genital HSV-2infection requires the antigen stimulation of migratory T cells in the GLN.

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