NK cells previously exposed to HSV-2 Ags reduce the consequence of secondary HSV-2 infection in mice that lack B- and T- lymphocytes.

<p>A group of female RAG1^−/− mice (n = 4–5) were immunized intra-vaginally with TK^−/− HSV-2 (1×10⁴ PFU per animal) alongside unimmunized controls. Both groups were infected 3 weeks following immunization with a lethal dose of wild type HSV-2 (5×10³ PFU per animal) intra-vaginally. The mice were observed for genital lesions and vaginal washes were collected 1–3 days post-infection. (a), (b) and (c) illustrate the percentage survival, the vaginal lesion scores and viral titers in vaginal washes. The experiment was repeated twice with similar results.