Pseudorabies virus (PRV) establishes a lifelong latent infection in swine trigeminal ganglion (TG) following acute infection. Increased corticosteroid levels, due to stress, increases the incidence of reactivation from latency. Muscle injection combined with intravenous deliver of the synthetic corticosteroid dexamethasone (DEX) consistently induces reactivation from latency in pigs. In this study, PRV-free piglets were infected with PRV. Viral shedding in nasal and ocular swabs demonstrated that PRV infection entered the latent period. The anti-PRV antibody was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and the serum neutralization test, which suggested that the PRV could establish latent infection in the presence of humoral immunity. Immunohistochemistry and viral genome detection of TG neurons suggested that PRV was reactivated from latency. Viral gene expressions of IE180, EP0, VP16, and LLT-intron were readily detected at 3-h post-DEX treatment, but gB, a γ1 gene, was not detectable. The differentially expressed phosphorylated proteins of TG neurons were analyzed by ITRAQ coupled with LC-MS/MS, and p-EIF2S2 differentially expression was confirmed by western blot assay. Taken together, our study provides the evidence that typical gene expression in PRV reactivation from latency in TG is disordered compared with known lytic infection in epithelial cells.

伪狂犬病病毒 (PRV) 在急性感染后在猪三叉神经节 (TG) 中建立终生潜伏感染。由于压力而增加的皮质类固醇水平会增加潜伏期再激活的发生率。肌肉注射结合静脉内递送合成皮质类固醇地塞米松 (DEX) 始终如一地诱导猪从潜伏期重新激活。在本研究中，未感染 PRV 的仔猪感染了 PRV。鼻腔和眼部拭子中的病毒脱落表明 PRV 感染进入潜伏期。酶联免疫吸附试验和血清中和试验检测到抗PRV抗体，提示PRV可在体液免疫存在下建立潜伏感染。TG 神经元的免疫组织化学和病毒基因组检测表明 PRV 从潜伏期重新激活。在 DEX 处理后 3 小时很容易检测到 IE180、EP0、VP16 和 LLT 内含子的病毒基因表达，但检测不到 γ1 基因 gB。ITRAQ结合LC-MS/MS分析TG神经元差异表达的磷酸化蛋白，蛋白质印迹法证实p-EIF2S2差异表达。总之，我们的研究提供的证据表明，与已知的上皮细胞裂解感染相比，TG 潜伏期 PRV 再激活的典型基因表达紊乱。