Chimpanzees gave genital herpes to early human ancestors, California University study finds
WHERE did the sexually transmitted disease herpes originate? A newly published study finds it was not from sleeping with other people.
DON’T blame it on another man — or woman.
The sexually transmitted disease, genital herpes, was caught by early human ancestors from the chimpanzee.
Researchers at the University of California, San Diego, found that the herpes simplex virus 1 infected hominids before their evolutionary split from chimps six million years ago.
In comparison, the herpes simplex 2 virus was transferred from chimps to human ancestors nearly 1.6 million years ago, before the rise of early modern humans about 200,000 years ago, Live Science reported.
“Before we were human, there was still cross-species transmission into our evolutionary lineage,” Joe Wertheim, study author and assistant research scientist at the university’s AntiViral Research Centre, told LiveScience.
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Wertheim noted in his study that herpes simplex virus 2 was caused by “cross-species transmission” from modern chimp ancestors to humans, while the herpes simplex virus 1 is a split between the chimp and human viruses.
“Understanding how and when we acquired viruses that currently infect us can give us perspective on future, potential cross-species transmission events that would lead to the introduction of new human viruses,” Wertheim told LiveScience.
There is currently no cure for the herpes simplex 2 virus, though the Courier Mail reported in February this year that Professer Ian Frazer’s genital herpes vaccine has passed its first big test in human trials, with researchers showing the product is safe and appears to produce an immune response.
Wertheim’s study was published in the Molecular Biology and Evolution journal.
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