The effect of UV radiation on the infectivity of VZV clades- version 1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The effect of ultra-violet (UV) radiation on the infectivity of different clades of varicella zoster virus (VZV).
IRAS ID
184116
Contact name
Philip Rice
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 10 months, 30 days
Research summary
Varicella zoster virus (VZV), the causative agent of chickenpox and shingles, shows marked differences in its epidemiology between tropical and temperate regions. In temperate regions chickenpox is primarily a disease of childhood with a very high transmission rate of 80-90% to susceptible household contacts. In the tropics however, chickenpox occurs at a much later age and there is a much lower household transmission rate of 15-20%. Furthermore, VZV can be classified into 5 clades which show different geographical distributions between tropical and temperate regions. The reasons for these differences are poorly understood. We hypothesise that ultra-violet (UV) radiation may, in addition to being the primary factor affecting the current transmissibility of chickenpox, have also been the most significant factor which has shaped the evolution and global distribution of viral clades.
As yet, there are no published data on the effect of UV on the infectivity of VZV. To test this hypothesis, tropical and temperate clades of VZV will be used to infect MeWo cells (malignant melanoma cell line) to culture VZV in the laboratory. The same quantity of VZV of different viral clades will then be exposed to artificial UV radiation for differing periods of time and the viral infectivity assessed by a standard plaque infectivity assay.
If a difference is found in the resistance of different clades of VZV to UV, numerous research questions could be addressed including the genetic determinants of this difference and whether the ability of VZV to reactivate is affected by virus clade. Ultimately, this research could become the first example whereby a climatic factor has directly influenced the evolution of a human virus. This is likely to have wider implications for how other human herpes viruses establish latency and reactivate and might identify biological targets capable of being inhibited, thereby interrupting the virus life-cycle.
REC name
West Midlands - Black Country Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/WM/0281
Date of REC Opinion
5 Aug 2015
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion