Longines Replica -
Replica Corum -
Patek Philippe CaliberSubject: Touch Of Death
Author: ironjusticeDate: 29 Sep 2008
"Two wrestlers died of their infections"
Public release date: 28-Sep-2008
Contact: Lucy Goodchild
l.goodchild@sgm.ac.uk
44-118-988-1843
Society for General Microbiology
Deadly rugby virus spreads in sumo wrestlers
Rugby players may get more than just the ball out of a scrum – herpes
virus can cause a skin disease called "scrumpox" and it spreads
through physical contact. Researchers have studied the spread of the
disease among sumo wrestlers in Japan and have discovered that a new
strain of the virus could be even more pathogenic, according to an
article published in the October issue of the Journal of General
Virology.
"Scrumpox", or herpes gladiatorum, is a skin infection caused by the
herpes virus, which can cause coldsores. It is spread through direct
skin-to-skin contact so it is common among rugby players and
wrestlers. Symptoms can start with a sore throat and swollen glands
and the telltale blisters appear on the face, neck, arms or legs. The
disease is highly infectious, so players who are infected are often
taken out of competition to stop the virus from spreading.
"Scientists in Japan believe that a strain of herpes virus called BgKL
has replaced the strain BgOL as one of the most common and pathogenic,
causing a skin disease in sumo wrestlers," said Dr Kazuo Yanagi from
the National Institute of Infectious Diseases in Tokyo, Japan. "We
wanted to see if this is the case, so we studied the spread of the
disease in sumo wrestlers in Tokyo."
The researchers looked at samples taken from 39 wrestlers diagnosed
with herpes gladiatorum, who were living in 8 different sumo stables
in Tokyo between 1989 and 1994. Tests showed that some of the cases
were primary infections, being the first time the wrestlers had been
infected. However, in some cases the disease had recurred several
times.
"Herpes virus can hide in nerve cells for long periods of time and
symptoms can reappear later," said Dr Yanagi. "Our research showed
that the BgKL strain of herpes is reactivated, spreads more
efficiently and causes more severe symptoms than BgOL and other
strains. This is the first study to suggest that the recurrence of
herpes gladiatorum symptoms in humans may depend on the strain of
virus."
Professional sumo wrestlers live and train together in a stable called
a heya. This makes studying the spread of herpes virus easier. Their
living arrangement suggests that the source of primary herpes
infections among sumo wrestlers in each stable was their fellow
wrestlers.
"Two of the wrestlers died as a result of their infections, so cases
like this do need to be investigated," said Dr Yanagi. "This research
will aid future studies on herpes and may help identify herpes genes
that are involved in recurrence and spread of the disease. We hope it
will also contribute to the development of medicines to stop the
disease from spreading and recurring in infected patients."
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