Science & Tech · Science & Environment · 1 day ago
Skin organoids show how herpes simplex virus spreads between cells
Researchers in Germany used 3D models of human skin to trace HSV-1 spread between neighboring cells.
The models included several skin cell types, hair follicles and nerve-like cells, allowing the team to study infection in tissue rather than flat cell cultures.
Dermal fibroblasts carried high amounts of virus early, while basal skin cells and several hair follicle cell types carried less, even when infected cells were nearby.
The virus reached hair follicles and sensory nerve cells later, suggesting those cells may have some resistance, though they are not immune.
HSV-1 commonly causes cold sores, but it can also remain dormant in facial sensory nerves and, rarely, reach the brain and cause dangerous inflammation.
The findings show that infection progresses differently across skin cell types, offering a clearer picture of how the virus moves through tissue.
The organoid model has limits, including the absence of blood vessels and immune cells, so the findings describe this laboratory model rather than complete human skin.
Researchers used human skin organoids to map how herpes simplex virus 1 spreads between neighboring skin cells.
The study found that dermal fibroblasts carried large amounts of virus early in infection, while basal keratinocytes and hair follicle cells carried less.
The virus reached hair follicles and sensory neurons later, suggesting those cells may have some resistance.
The team combined imaging with spatial transcriptomics to examine infection and cell responses in tissue.
The study was published in Science Advances.
- Who
- Researchers at the Max Delbrück Center and University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf.
- What
- They mapped how herpes simplex virus 1 spreads through skin organoids and how cells respond.
- When
- The study was published before the reports dated October 30 and 31, 2026. The exact publication date is not stated.
- Where
- In human hair-bearing skin organoids used as a model of skin tissue.
- Why
- To understand how HSV-1 spreads between different skin cell types and how those cells respond to infection.
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- Virus
- Herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1)
- Early infection
- Dermal fibroblasts carried large amounts of virus
- Later infection
- The virus reached hair follicles and sensory neurons later
- Model
- Human hair-bearing skin organoids
- Publication
- Science Advances
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What people are saying
It was fascinating to see how the virus spreads through the organoid tissue, from one cell type to another, and also how each cell type responds to it
It was remarkable to observe how the virus spread through the organoid tissue, from one cell type to another, and also how each cell type responded to it