By: Deborah Johnson Wood
Curry is more than just tasty; it might hold the secret to curing facial cold sores, otherwise known as the herpes simplex virus.
Van Andel Institute scientists have discovered that curcumin, a component of turmeric, blocks the herpes simplex viral infections. Determining how that works could drive researchers to new treatment development.
A Michigan State University graduate student, Sebla Kutluay, is completing her thesis research at VAI and was lead author of the report published in Virology.
“We found that cells treated with curcumin did not support herpes simplex virus infections very well,” she said in a prepared statement. “Now we need to determine how curcumin blocks the infections.”
Facial cold sores can be painful and unsightly. In those who have the virus, the sores can recur frequently.
“This isn’t a recipe for a remedy yet,” said Dean Steven J. Triezenberg, Ph.D., spokesperson for the VAI and head of the laboratory that published the findings. “Applying turmeric or curry to cold sores won’t have an effect. Once we determine what is happening to block the infections at the cellular level, we’ll be closer to developing a treatment.”
There are two types of herpes simplex virus: HSV-1, which commonly results in facial cold sores or fever blisters, and HSV-2, commonly associated with genital herpes. The VAI findings focused on HSV-1, which affects more than half of Americans.
Source: Van Andel Institute
Deborah Johnson Wood is development news editor for Rapid Growth Media. She can be contacted at [email protected].
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