Herpes simplex virus

This article is about the virus. For information about the disease caused by the virus, see Herpes simplex. For the genus of viruses, see Simplexvirus.

Herpes simplex viruses
TEM micrograph of virions of a herpes simplex virus species
TEM micrograph of virions of a herpes simplex virus species
Scientific classificationEdit this classification
(unranked): Virus
Realm: Duplodnaviria
Kingdom: Heunggongvirae
Phylum: Peploviricota
Class: Herviviricetes
Order: Herpesvirales
Family: Orthoherpesviridae
Subfamily: Alphaherpesvirinae
Genus: Simplexvirus
Groups included
Cladistically included but traditionally excluded taxa

All other Simplexvirus sp.:

Herpes simplex virus 1 (cold sores) and 2 (genital herpes) (HSV-1 and HSV-2), also known by their taxonomic names Human alphaherpesvirus 1 and Human alphaherpesvirus 2, are two members of the human Herpesviridae family, a set of viruses that produce viral infections in the majority of humans.[1][2] Both HSV-1 and HSV-2 are very common and contagious. They can be spread when an infected person begins shedding the virus.

As of 2016, about 67% of the world population under the age of 50 had HSV-1.[3] In the United States, about 47.8% and 11.9% are estimated to have HSV-1 and HSV-2, respectively, though actual prevalence may be much higher.[4] Because it can be transmitted through any intimate contact, it is one of the most common sexually transmitted infections.[5]

  1. ^ Ryan KJ, Ray CG, eds. (2004). Sherris Medical Microbiology (4th ed.). McGraw Hill. pp. 555–62. ISBN 978-0-8385-8529-0.
  2. ^ Chayavichitsilp P, Buckwalter JV, Krakowski AC, Friedlander SF (April 2009). "Herpes simplex". Pediatr Rev. 30 (4): 119–29, quiz 130. doi:10.1542/pir.30-4-119. PMID 19339385. S2CID 34735917.
  3. ^ "Herpes simplex virus". World Health Organization. 31 January 2017.
  4. ^ "Prevalence of Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 and 2" (PDF). CDC NCHS Data Brief. 16 February 2020.
  5. ^ Straface G, Selmin A, Zanardo V, De Santis M, Ercoli A, Scambia G (2012). "Herpes simplex virus infection in pregnancy". Infectious Diseases in Obstetrics and Gynecology. 2012: 385697. doi:10.1155/2012/385697. PMC 3332182. PMID 22566740.