Abstract
We compared 71 family caregivers of dementia sufferers and 58 control subjects on three different immune measures relevant to latent herpes simplex virus Type 1 (HSV-1) infection: neutralizing antibody titers, antibody titers to a total viral antigen, and a proliferative memory T-cell response. Caregivers had significantly higher antibody titers to the total viral antigen and a poorer HSV-1 specific T-cell response than controls, but no significant difference in neutralizing antibody titers between groups was observed. These data provide additional evidence that psychological stress can modulate a virus-specific immune response associated with caregiving.
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Preparation of this manuscript was supported in part by grants R37 MH42096, R01 MH50538, and by Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center core grant CA 16058.
We thank Leigh Ann Kutz, Elizabeth Byrnes, Bryon Laskowski, and Jessica Candelora for excellent technical assistance. We also thank Dr. John Sheridan for comments on the manuscript. We also thank the Central Ohio Chapters of the Alzheimer’s Association and the Parkinson’s Disease Association for their support.
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Glaser, R., Kiecolt-Glaser, J.K. Chronic stress modulates the virus-specific immune response to latent herpes simplex virus Type 1. ann. behav. med. 19, 78–82 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02883323
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02883323