Isopentenyl Pyrophosphate-Reactive Vγ9Vδ2 T Helper 1-Like Cells Are the Major γδ T Cell Subset Recovered from Lesions of Patients with Genital Herpes

Herpes simplex virus (HSV)–specific T cells are essential to control and resolve genital herpes (GH). To investigate the potential involvement of gd T cells in GH, T cells were recovered and expanded, by mitogenic stimulation, to T cell lines from the genital lesions of 17 patients with GH and 5 control subjects who had other diseases. Relatively high numbers of gd T cells—predominantly, Vg9Vd2 T cells—were detected only in the T cell lines of the patients with GH. Intralesional Vg9Vd2 T cell clones did not recognize HSV-infected cells, but they showed reactivity to isopentenyl pyrophosphate and Daudi cells. The T cell clones secreted interferon-g, tumor necrosis factor–a, interleukin (IL)–8, macrophage inflammatory protein–1a, and RANTES (regulated on activation, normally T cell expressed or secreted), but they secreted no or limited IL-4. The results of the present study suggest the infiltration and putative involvement of isopentenyl pyrophosphate–reactive Vg9Vd2 T helper 1–like cells in individuals with GH. Genital herpes (GH), which affects the genital tract and is predominantly caused by herpes simplex virus (HSV) type 2 (HSV2), is one of the most prevalent sexually transmitted diseases worldwide. The local HSV-specific adaptive immune response is considered to play a pivotal role in controlling the infection [1]. As for other viral infections, innate immune cells, such as macrophages, NK cells, and gd T cells, have been suggested to play a protective role in HSV infections [2].