Transneuronal tracing of airways related sensory circuitry using Herpes Simplex Virus 1, strain H129

Abstract

Herpes simplex virus‐1 (HSV‐1) undergoes both retrograde and anterograde transneuronal movement along synaptically connected neurons. The H129 strain of HSV‐1 is unique as it travels primarily in the anterograde direction, making it ideal for mapping sensory pathways in the CNS. We employed the H129 strain to map the central organisation of the sensory circuitry arising from the extrathoracic trachea. Under Isoflurane anaesthesia rats (n=20) were inoculated with 10ul of the H129 strain into the extrathoracic tracheal lumen at titers ranging from 7×10^4 to 7×10^7 pfu/ml and allowed to recover for up to 120 hours. All relevant tissues along the neuroaxis were processed for HSV‐1 immunoreactivi..