Recent research from Princeton University has found some surprising results regarding how herpes can develop into cold sores. The key findings indicate that Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV-1) may only require one or two viral particles in order to infect a skin cell during the first stage formation of cold sores. This is in contrast to many other viruses that spread through the use of millions of particles and has implications’ for research considering the transmission of herpes and evolution of the virus.
The HSV-1 particles may be latent in the cells of the nervous system for a long time but once awakened they invade a skin cell. It appears that a single particle then multiplies to hundreds of copies. These copies then invade nearby cells, which combine to form a cold sore.
Having one or two particles invade a cell implies that the process is like a bottle neck, which on the one hand only enables the fittest particles to pass through and on the other hand renders it vulnerable to treatment as there may be times during this process when the infection is more susceptible to treatments. Moreover, if only two particles are responsible for the initial stage of cold sore formations then that the virus has a limited genetic diversity, which in turn limits the chances for the virus to survive, evolve and spread.
These findings are encouraging and novel and we will be interested to see where this research leads in the future. At the current stage, these findings are more likely to produce further research than a new treatment.