From psychosocial stress to herpes simplex infection: A sequence of coordinated events regulated in a cascade fashion

Herpes simplex viruses type 1 (HSV-1) and type 2 (HSV-2) give rise to latent infections, which makes them unwelcome guests for a human host’s lifetime.1,2 Clinical manifestations of HSV infection range from asymptomatic infection to mucocutaneous conditions such as orolabial, ocular, and genital herpes, as well as less common central nervous complications such herpetic encephalitis, neonatal herpes, and fatal dissemination, particularly important in immune compromised individuals. Clinical pictures vary depending on the site of viral entry, the primary or secondary nature of the disease, and the degree of host immune response.