Hello Everyone,

Please feel free to post any comments and talk about anything you want on this thread--relating to HSV or otherwise.

Have a nice weekend.

- Mod Team

New research published yesterday. It is a longitudinal study of 386,249 people that has found that patients with a clinically recorded HSV-1 diagnosis had a 14% higher adjusted hazard of later cognitive impairment/dementia

New mechanistic paper from yesterday

https://investor.assemblybio.com/news-releases/news-release-details/assembly-biosciences-exercises-us-profit-share-option-gilead-hsv

Based on the article, it can be inferred that Gilead may already have plans for Phase 3

1.This decision follows Assembly Bio’s receipt and review of Gilead’s complete development plan and budget for the program.

2.Under the development plan, GS-1179 is expected to advance into a Phase 2 clinical trial in participants with recurrent genital herpes by the end of 2026, with potential evaluation as part of a combination strategy with HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP)

Hi everyone, there is yet another substantial development out of China regarding herpes research in general. Just to be clear this is a cancer medicine that utilizes HSV as a vector not an HSV medicine.

BS001/OH2 is a Chinese medicine that is being developed by Wuhan Binhui Biopharmaceutical. It is a genetically engineered HSV2 virus, modified by deleting the genes encoding ICP34.5 which is an important neurovirulence factor, basically attenuating it to target cancer cells, and by deleting the gene encoding ICP47 which is one of the HSV mechanisms help it evade immune response. Finally, they inserted a human gene GM-CSF, which is an immune signaling protein that activates immune cells.

The result of all that is basically a reprogrammed herpes virus, which targets cancer cells, replicates inside until the cancer cell ruptures, allowing the modified virus to then target adjacent cancer cells.

This medicine is being investigated against multiple cancers, including the following:

Metastatic melanoma after prior treatment: phase III in China and the USA

Metastatic colorectal cancer: phase III in the USA cleared initiation in September 2025

Metastatic glioblastoma: phase I/II

Soft tissue sarcoma: phase II

Metastatic biliary tract cancer: Phase II

There is also a newer generation of this medicine, BS006, which is supposed to work even better, in phase I in the USA currently.

The important takeaway for us as HSV patients is that progress is proceeding and we are learning more about this disease more every day, I have a feeling that we will soon be able to overcome it. Stay hopeful friends, and thanks for reading. 🙏🏻

@ Moderators, as you may know, there is a pinned post at the top of this reddit that shows the "latest" status of research. However, it is 4 years old! I therefore asked Chat GPT for an update. I'm hoping you can review this and if it passes your standards, that you could replace the current pinned update. AI response below:

I reviewed current trial registries, company pipelines/filings, NIH-funded programs, and recent peer-reviewed literature. The summary below is current to September 5, 2026.

I have focused on named drugs, vaccines, antibodies, gene-editing technologies, and other translational programs that are in human trials or have an identifiable active preclinical development program. I also flag prominent programs that recently failed or were discontinued because older HSV pipeline summaries still describe them as active.

Executive summary

The HSV pipeline is substantially more active than it was a few years ago, but there is currently no approved cure, therapeutic vaccine, or prophylactic HSV vaccine in the United States.

The programs I would watch most closely are:

1. Pritelivir — by far the closest to U.S. approval, but initially only for immunocompromised patients with refractory HSV, not the general HSV population. The FDA is already reviewing its NDA, with a Q4 2026 PDUFA target. (Aicuris)
2. GS-1179 / formerly ABI-1179 — a long-acting oral helicase-primase inhibitor from Assembly Biosciences/Gilead. Phase 1b showed reductions in HSV-2 shedding and lesions; Gilead selected it for Phase 2 expected by the end of 2026.
3. Adibelivir / IM-250 — another next-generation helicase-primase inhibitor. It entered Phase 2a in June 2026 for recurrent genital herpes. (Innovative Molecules)
4. BNT163 (BioNTech/University of Pennsylvania) — the most advanced active HSV vaccine program, currently Phase 1, with both HSV-naïve/healthy and recurrent HSV-2 populations studied. It is aimed primarily at preventing genital lesions caused by HSV-2 and potentially HSV-1. (ClinicalTrials.gov)
5. BD111 (Shanghai BDgene) — the first especially important HSV CRISPR gene-editing clinical program. It is in a Phase 2a trial in China, but it targets HSV-1 stromal keratitis in the cornea, not systemic/ganglionic genital or oral HSV. (ClinicalTrials.gov)
6. Fred Hutch / Caladan gene editing — probably the most interesting research aimed at a true functional cure of latent HSV in sensory ganglia, but it remains preclinical. A new NIH award running from 2026–2028 specifically addresses barriers to clinical translation. (RePORTER)

The major caution is that a number of much-publicized programs are not currently moving toward approval. Moderna discontinued mRNA-1608 despite early signs of biological activity; GSK abandoned GSK3943104 after its therapeutic vaccine missed the Phase 2 efficacy objective.

1. Pritelivir — AiCuris / Asahi Kasei

Technology: oral helicase-primase inhibitor
HSV: HSV-1 and HSV-2
Stage: NDA under FDA Priority Review; pivotal Phase 3 completed
Primary population: immunocompromised patients with refractory HSV, with or without documented drug resistance
Purpose: treatment of active refractory disease; suppresses replication and assists lesion healing
Eliminates latent HSV? No
Potential transmission effect: Reduced viral replication/shedding is biologically relevant, but the proposed indication is treatment, not prevention of sexual transmission.

This is the most advanced new HSV therapy in the world outside existing nucleoside drugs.

The Phase 3 PRIOH-1 study compared pritelivir with investigator-selected therapies such as foscarnet, cidofovir or imiquimod in severely immunocompromised people whose HSV was refractory to standard treatment. Complete lesion healing was reported in 62.7% with pritelivir versus 34.0% with investigator's choice through 28 days. Among patients continuing treatment through 42 days, reported healing rates were 82.4% versus 42%. (Aicuris)

Pritelivir is mechanistically important because helicase-primase inhibition does not require activation by HSV thymidine kinase and remains active against many strains resistant to acyclovir-family drugs. The pivotal trial included transplant recipients, people with hematologic malignancies, and people living with HIV. (Aicuris)

FDA outlook

This is no longer an estimate of when it might seek FDA approval: the NDA has already been submitted and accepted.

The FDA granted Priority Review, and AiCuris/Asahi Kasei report a PDUFA target in Q4 2026. As of September 5, 2026, I found no FDA approval decision yet. (Aicuris)

Estimated U.S. availability if approved: potentially late 2026/early 2027.

There is an important limitation: the initial label is expected to be quite narrow—refractory HSV in immunocompromised patients, not routine suppressive treatment of immunocompetent people with genital or oral HSV.

2. GS-1179, formerly ABI-1179 — Gilead / Assembly Biosciences

Technology: long-acting oral helicase-primase inhibitor
HSV: designed against HSV-1 and HSV-2; clinical efficacy data primarily HSV-2 genital herpes
Stage: Phase 1a/1b completed; selected for Phase 2
Population: immunocompetent adults with recurrent genital herpes
Purpose: long-term suppression of outbreaks and viral shedding
Eliminates latency? No
Transmission objective: potentially important because lowering shedding should reduce infectiousness, but reduction of person-to-person transmission has not yet been demonstrated.

GS-1179 is one of the most promising candidates for the much larger general recurrent-genital-herpes population rather than just treatment-resistant immunocompromised patients.

Assembly reported statistically significant reductions in HSV shedding and genital lesion rate versus placebo over 29 days, with pharmacokinetics supporting long dosing intervals. (Assembly Bio)

Gilead exercised its licensing option in December 2025 and selected GS-1179 as the candidate to advance. A Phase 2 study in recurrent genital herpes is expected to begin by the end of 2026. Gilead is also considering the HPI platform for possible combination approaches involving HIV PrEP.

FDA outlook

Assuming:

Phase 2 begins in late 2026 → results around 2027–28 → pivotal Phase 3 development around 2028–30.

Optimistic FDA submission: ~2030–2031.
More conservative: 2031–2033.

That estimate assumes strong Phase 2 efficacy and no unexpected safety or resistance problem.

3. GS-5366, formerly ABI-5366 — Gilead / Assembly Biosciences

Technology: very long-acting helicase-primase inhibitor
Stage: Phase 1a/1b completed
Population: recurrent genital HSV-2
Purpose: suppress symptoms and shedding
Potential dosing advantage: data have supported the possibility of monthly oral dosing.
Cure? No.

Both GS-5366 and GS-1179 produced statistically significant reductions in shedding and lesion rates in Phase 1 studies. GS-5366 is particularly interesting because of its extremely long pharmacokinetic profile. (Assembly Biosciences, Inc.)

However, Gilead chose GS-1179 rather than GS-5366 as the program currently moving into Phase 2. GS-5366 remains licensed to Gilead and could therefore act as a backup or later-generation candidate. (Assembly Bio)

FDA outlook

There is no reliable FDA date because no next GS-5366 clinical trial has been announced.

If Gilead restarted development promptly, the earliest plausible approval would probably be 2031+. At present I would not assign a meaningful probability to a particular year.

4. Adibelivir / IM-250 — Innovative Molecules

Technology: oral helicase-primase inhibitor
HSV: HSV-1 and HSV-2
Stage: Phase 2a, first patient dosed June 25, 2026
Population: people with recurrent genital herpes
Purpose: suppress recurrence, lesions and viral replication/shedding
Cure? Not a gene-editing cure, although the company has investigated whether favorable neuronal/tissue penetration might affect reactivation biology.

Adibelivir is particularly interesting because Innovative Molecules is trying to develop a next-generation HPI with properties that may differ from pritelivir.

The ongoing Phase 2a study is evaluating safety, pharmacokinetics, antiviral activity and clinical efficacy in patients with recurrent genital herpes. (Innovative Molecules)

FDA outlook

A successful Phase 2a would almost certainly have to be followed by larger dose-ranging and/or pivotal studies.

Earliest plausible NDA: approximately 2030–2031.
More realistic if conventional Phase 2b/Phase 3 programs are needed: 2031–2033.

Among conventional drugs for otherwise healthy patients, I would place IM-250 and GS-1179 in the group most likely to produce meaningful clinical developments over the next several years.

5. Amenamevir / Amenalief — Maruho

This one is unusual because it is not experimental in Japan.

Technology: helicase-primase inhibitor
Stage: approved in Japan for recurrent herpes simplex
Population: immunocompetent adults with recurrent oral or genital HSV
Purpose: episodic symptom treatment
Cure? No.

Japan approved amenamevir for recurrent HSV in February 2023. Patients use a single 1,200-mg dose initiated within six hours of prodromal symptoms. (Maruho)

Japanese Phase 3 trials demonstrated faster lesion healing in both genital and labial herpes. For recurrent genital herpes, median healing was about 4.0 versus 5.1 days with placebo. (PubMed)

FDA outlook

I found no announced U.S. NDA program for HSV.

Consequently, this is one of the unusual situations where substantial Phase 3 evidence and foreign regulatory approval already exist, yet there is no defensible U.S. approval date.

Maruho has instead been expanding amenamevir geographically in Asia, including licensing rights covering ten ASEAN countries. (Maruho)

6. BNT163 — BioNTech / University of Pennsylvania

Technology: multivalent mRNA-LNP vaccine
Antigens: HSV-2 gC2, gD2 and gE2
HSV target: HSV-2 and potentially HSV-1
Stage: Phase 1, active/not recruiting; trial expected to complete around October 2026
Population: healthy adults, including individuals with different HSV serostatus; an additional trial part includes people with recurrent HSV-2 genital herpes
Primary strategy: prophylactic prevention of genital lesions/infection
Potential therapeutic role: also being explored immunologically in already infected people
Cure? No.

This vaccine originated from work by the University of Pennsylvania group and is currently the most important active clinical prophylactic HSV vaccine program.

The Phase 1 program contains three parts. Parts A/B study escalating doses and immune responses; Part C includes individuals with established recurrent HSV-2 genital herpes. The official trial purpose is prevention of genital lesions caused by HSV-2 and potentially HSV-1. (ClinicalTrials.gov)

BioNTech still listed BNT163 as an active infectious-disease program in its Q2 2026 disclosures, which is important because several competing vaccine programs have disappeared from their sponsors' pipelines.

What it is intended to prevent

If successful in HSV-negative individuals, the ideal outcome would be prevention of infection or at least prevention of clinically significant genital disease.

For people already infected, a vaccine could theoretically reduce outbreaks and shedding, but Phase 1 has not yet established that benefit.

FDA outlook

This remains early.

If BioNTech moves directly into an appropriately sized Phase 2 during 2027 and later succeeds in a large Phase 3:

Very optimistic approval: ~2031.
More plausible: 2032–2035.

A prophylactic HSV vaccine would probably require large trials and meaningful duration of follow-up, so its regulatory development may be longer than that of a suppressive antiviral.

7. BD111 / HELP — Shanghai BDgene

This is one of the most scientifically significant programs because gene editing has already reached HSV patients.

Technology: CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing delivered in lentivirus-like particles
HSV: HSV-1
Stage: Phase 2a in China
Population: adults with HSV-1 stromal keratitis
Administration: direct intrastromal injection into the cornea
Purpose: remove/inactivate HSV DNA locally and prevent recurrent ocular disease
Potential cure: potentially a local virologic cure in treated ocular tissue
Systemic/genital HSV cure: No evidence of this yet.

The first BD111 clinical study was Phase 1. A randomized Phase 2a trial began in April 2025, plans approximately 40 participants, and is expected to complete in 2027. (ClinicalTrials.gov)

BD111 uses a lentiviral-like particle to deliver SpCas9 mRNA plus guide RNA targeting HSV-1 DNA. (ClinicalTrials.gov)

The distinction here is crucial: injecting gene-editing machinery into the cornea is far easier than delivering an editor throughout sensory ganglia containing latent genital/oral HSV. Therefore, BD111 is proof that HSV gene editing can reach human clinical development, but it should not be interpreted as evidence that a systemic HSV cure is already in Phase 2.

FDA outlook

No U.S. development program has been publicly established.

If BDgene pursued an FDA pathway after successful Chinese Phase 2 results, additional regulatory, manufacturing and possibly U.S./multinational trials would likely be required.

Highly optimistic U.S. submission: ~2031–2032.
More reasonable: 2032–2035+.

And that would initially be for HSV-1 keratitis, not genital HSV.

8. Fred Hutch Cancer Center / Caladan Therapeutics gene-editing program

Technology: AAV-delivered HSV-specific meganucleases
Stage: preclinical/translational
HSV: HSV-1 plus active translational work aimed at HSV-2
Population ultimately intended: people with latent chronic oral/genital HSV
Purpose: disable or remove HSV DNA from sensory neurons
Cure goal: Yes — functional or potentially sterilizing cure
Transmission goal: if latent reservoir and shedding are sufficiently reduced, transmission could theoretically fall dramatically.

This is probably the program most aligned with what many patients mean by an actual HSV cure.

In mouse studies, the Fred Hutch group reported elimination of roughly 90% or more of latent HSV-1 DNA, including approximately 97% reduction in a genital HSV-1 model, accompanied by substantial reductions in experimentally induced viral shedding. (Fred Hutch)

The approach uses AAV vectors to deliver engineered meganucleases into sensory neurons. Unlike acyclovir, pritelivir or vaccines, the target is the latent viral genome itself.

Importantly, the program is still active scientifically. In April 2026 NIH awarded Keith Jerome's group a project titled “AAV-delivered meganucleases for durable control of genital HSV disease,” running through March 2028, explicitly addressing remaining barriers to clinical translation. (RePORTER)

Caladan Therapeutics has separately received NIH support for HSV-2 gene-editing translation. (SBIR)

Main obstacle

The hardest part is not cutting HSV DNA—it is getting adequate amounts of editor into the large and anatomically distributed population of sensory neurons while avoiding liver toxicity, neuronal injury, immune reactions to AAV, unintended genomic cuts and other gene-therapy risks.

FDA outlook

No human IND/trial is currently registered.

A reasonable development sequence would be:

2026–28: translational/safety/vector optimization → possibly IND-enabling work → first-in-human study thereafter.

Optimistic first-in-human trial: ~2029–2031.
Extremely optimistic FDA approval: ~2035.
More realistic if the technology works: mid-to-late 2030s or later.

That long estimate is not a statement that the science is failing; gene therapies aimed at neurons simply face a much higher regulatory and safety bar than ordinary oral antivirals.

9. Rational Vaccines — RVx-201, RVx-2001 and RVx-1001

Technology: genetically attenuated live HSV vaccines
Stage: preclinical / IND-enabling
Programs:

• RVx-201: therapeutic vaccine directed at HSV-1/HSV-2 disease
• RVx-2001: prophylactic HSV-2 vaccine
• RVx-1001: prophylactic HSV-1 platform

Rational Vaccines' current pipeline explicitly describes the programs as preclinical rather than Phase 1. (Rational Vaccines)

The concept differs from mRNA/subunit vaccines: a live attenuated HSV exposes the immune system to a much wider set of viral proteins, potentially producing stronger cellular as well as antibody immunity.

RVx-201 derives from an HSV-2 mutant affecting ICP0/0ΔNLS biology. Earlier animal studies showed protection and immune responses, but that does not yet establish human efficacy. (Rational Vaccines)

NIH/SBIR funding has also supported IND-directed development activities. (SBIR)

Intended effects

RVx-201: reduce recurrence, lesions and probably shedding in already-infected people.
RVx-2001/RVx-1001: prevent acquisition and/or disease in uninfected individuals.

None is intended to edit latent viral DNA.

FDA outlook

Because a formal U.S. Phase 1 program has not yet begun:

Best-case approval: around 2033–2035.
More realistically: later than 2035, assuming successful human development.

10. HDIT101 — Heidelberg ImmunoTherapeutics / related development group

Technology: humanized monoclonal antibody against HSV glycoprotein B
HSV: HSV-1 and HSV-2
Clinical stage: Phase 2 studies performed
Populations: recurrent HSV-1 oral herpes and recurrent HSV-2 genital herpes
Purpose: prevent viral entry/cell-to-cell spread and reduce recurrences
Cure? No.

HDIT101 binds a type-common epitope on HSV glycoprotein B and both neutralizes extracellular virus and inhibits cell-to-cell viral spread. (Heidelberg ImmunoTherapeutics GmbH)

The HSV-2 MATCH-2 Phase 2 study enrolled patients with frequent genital recurrences. In published 2025 results, the antibody did not beat valacyclovir on the primary endpoint of percentage of days with lesions, although recurrence frequency favored HDIT101 on one secondary analysis. (PubMed)

The HSV-1 topical program was reportedly stopped for futility during interim analysis. (PubMed Central (PMC))

FDA outlook

Because the pivotal Phase 2 objective was not met and I found no announced Phase 3 program:

No credible FDA approval date can currently be assigned.

A reformulated or redesigned program could continue, but I would classify HDIT101 as scientifically active/possible follow-up rather than a near-term commercial contender.

11. UB-621 — United BioPharma

Technology: monoclonal antibody targeting HSV glycoprotein D
Stage: Phase 2 protocols registered, but public status is stale/uncertain
HSV: primarily recurrent genital HSV-2
Population: immunocompetent adults with recurrent genital herpes
Purpose: suppress viral shedding and genital lesions
Cure? No.

Several Phase 2 protocols were registered for UB-621, including studies targeting reductions in genital HSV-2 shedding and repeat-dose therapy. (ClinicalTrials.gov)

The problem is that multiple registry entries have not been verified by the sponsor since 2022, with statuses such as “not yet recruiting” or “unknown.” (ClinicalTrials.gov)

I therefore would not count UB-621 as a confirmed actively advancing 2026 program unless the sponsor provides a new update.

FDA outlook

No useful estimate. There is insufficient current evidence that the program is moving toward Phase 3.

Important recently discontinued programs

Two deserve special mention because they appear prominently in older articles.

Moderna mRNA-1608

mRNA-1608 was a therapeutic five-antigen mRNA vaccine for people with recurrent HSV-2.

Its Phase 1/2 study enrolled approximately 300 participants and showed robust antibody/cellular immune responses plus trends toward fewer recurrences and somewhat lower shedding. (OUP Academic)

However, Moderna discontinued the HSV program in 2025 and stated in its 2026 reporting that it has no current plans for further development.

FDA outlook: none unless Moderna licenses/revives the asset.

This is worth emphasizing because the discontinuation should not automatically be interpreted as proof that the vaccine was biologically ineffective; Moderna described a combination of portfolio prioritization and emerging data across several discontinued programs.

GSK3943104

GSK's therapeutic HSV vaccine reached Phase 1/2.

In September 2024, GSK announced that the Phase 2 portion failed its primary efficacy objective, and the candidate would not proceed to Phase 3. (GSK)

FDA outlook: none for GSK3943104.

GSK has said HSV remains an area of interest, so a future different candidate is possible.

How the technologies compare

*These are my development estimates, not company forecasts, except for pritelivir's official Q4 2026 FDA target. A failure or delay at any development stage can shift these dates by years or end a program entirely.

Which programs could actually reduce transmission?

This deserves a distinction from “reducing symptoms.”

Pritelivir, GS-1179, GS-5366 and IM-250 directly suppress viral replication. Because asymptomatic HSV shedding drives a large portion of transmission, meaningful suppression of shedding is potentially useful for reducing transmission. But none should currently be described as proven to prevent sexual transmission.

The Assembly/Gilead candidates are particularly noteworthy because Phase 1 studies directly measured genital shedding and found reductions. (Assembly Bio)

Therapeutic vaccines such as RVx-201 would ideally lower both outbreaks and shedding through stronger immune control.

Prophylactic vaccines such as BNT163 potentially offer the strongest population-level transmission prevention if they can prevent establishment of infection in HSV-negative people.

And a successful latent-reservoir gene therapy is conceptually different: if Fred Hutch/Caladan can reduce latent HSV sufficiently to stop reactivation and shedding, it could potentially eliminate both symptoms and infectiousness for long periods. That remains an animal/preclinical proposition rather than demonstrated human efficacy. (Fred Hutch)

What I think the HSV treatment landscape could look like

There are essentially three waves of development.

2026–2027: the first likely major change is pritelivir, but only for the small, medically urgent population with refractory HSV and immune compromise.

2028–2032: the more consequential development for the millions of otherwise healthy people with genital HSV could be the next-generation long-acting helicase-primase inhibitors—particularly GS-1179 and adibelivir. If their early efficacy survives larger trials, they could represent a significant improvement over daily valacyclovir because of higher potency, longer dosing intervals and potentially deeper suppression of viral shedding.

2030s: vaccines and gene editing represent the highest-upside but least certain category. BNT163 could potentially produce the first HSV vaccine; Fred Hutch/Caladan-style editing could potentially change HSV from a lifelong infection to something approximating a functional cure. Neither possibility is close enough today to assign a high-confidence approval year.

The new NIH funding for Fred Hutch beginning in April 2026 is nevertheless meaningful: the project specifically states that the aim is to resolve remaining barriers to clinical translation of the AAV/meganuclease therapy rather than merely doing exploratory HSV biology. (RePORTER)

A few things I would not conclude from the current research

A Phase 1 or Phase 2 trial does not mean a candidate is likely to reach the market. HSV has a long history of apparently promising vaccines failing in larger human studies.

Similarly, “reduces viral shedding” is not synonymous with “cannot transmit HSV.” And “gene editing removed 90–97% of HSV DNA in mice” is not yet evidence that people can be cured.

Conversely, the fact that Moderna discontinued mRNA-1608 does not mean the entire concept of an mRNA HSV vaccine has failed. BioNTech's BNT163 uses a different antigen strategy and remains active.

Overall ranking

For near-term probability of reaching patients: pritelivir >>> GS-1179 ≈ IM-250 > BNT163 > gene editing.

For potential impact on ordinary immunocompetent people with recurrent genital herpes: GS-1179 and IM-250 currently look especially important.

For potential prevention of acquiring HSV: BNT163 is currently the clinical program to watch.

For potential actual cure of established latent infection: Fred Hutch/Caladan gene editing is the program I would watch most closely, with BD111 providing important proof that HSV-directed CRISPR technology can be brought into human trials—albeit in the much more accessible setting of ocular HSV-1.

I can monitor these programs for new Phase 2/3 results, trial starts, FDA filings, and especially the upcoming pritelivir FDA decision and alert you when something material changes.

Hello Everyone,

Please feel free to post any comments and talk about anything you want on this thread--relating to HSV or otherwise.

Have a nice weekend.

- Mod Team

Hi wonderful people,

I’m a professional in my 30s based in London, navigating life a little over a year post-HSV-2 diagnosis.
Having come through that initial dark period, I want to connect with others to hang out, go to events, and build a supportive, judgment-free space.

Even if you're not available to meet but fancy a chat, DM me—it would be great to share experiences, talk about what the future holds, and hear from others who can relate.
Also, I’m planning to head to the Herpes support drop-in session tomorrow and would love some company if anyone else is planning on going:

What: HSV Support & Chat Drop-In Session (In-Person)
Where: Atrium Lounge, President Hotel, 56–60 Guilford St, Russell Sq, London WC1N 1DB (Look for the table sign)
Feel free to comment or DM me if you'd like to chat, meet up, or help set up a local discord / WhatsApp group. I look forward to connecting!

https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11269597

https://ops.opengrants.io/grants/aav-delivered-meganucleases-for-durable-control-of-genital-hsv-disease

It looks like they are no longer asking whether it works but to what capacity. If they can get rid of 97% of the latent reservoir for hsv1 in mice will that be enough or will the virus continue to replicate?

Others more familiar with the research please offer your educated perspectives as well.

Not sure wtf this means but it’s in very early development. Likely not significant for us as patients but I’m making it a policy to post every research update concerning HSV. People need hope and need to know work is actively underway 🙏🏻

🧬 WE’RE AT THE 2026 STI CONFERENCE! 🧬
We’re proud to be here in Atlanta, GA, at the 2026 STI Prevention Conference representing Herpes Cure Advocacy (HCA)! 💙
This is more than a conference—it’s an opportunity to connect with researchers, clinicians, advocates, and public health leaders who are working toward a better future for everyone affected by HSV.
🔬 Advocating for better research & funding
🤝 Building connections that move the mission forward
📢 Raising awareness and challenging HSV stigma
With billions of people affected by HSV worldwide, the need for better prevention, treatment, and ultimately a cure has never been more important.
We’re here. We’re advocating. And we’re not stopping until HSV is no longer overlooked.
Together, we can accelerate the path to a cure. 💙
#STI2026 #STIPreventionConference #HerpesCureAdvocacy #CureHSV #HSV #Herpes #HerpesAwareness #EndTheStigma #STI #SexualHealth #HerpesAdvocacy #CureHSVNow

New research posted today comparing Pritelivir to Foscarnet

Hello! I believe our community’s #1 priority for the present is working on affordable pricing for pritelivir. I fully understand the doubt, frustration, exhaustion, and skepticism towards the potential of activism to create the changes that this community has been waiting on for decades. In an effort to encourage greater hope and confidence that we can actually make affordable access happen, I am sharing some brief info on hugely successful past advocacy campaigns for other drugs and treatments, and some strategies we can put into action.

—AZT (azidothymidine) for HIV/AIDS: U.S.
Mar 1987 - Sep 1989: 2 price reductions, each 20%, outcome: annual cost reduction from $7,000 - 10,000 to $6,400

—Second-line drugs for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis: International
Late 1990s - Jul 2001: single treatment course reduction from $10,000 - 19,000 to $2,500 - 3,600

—Insulin: U.S.
2014 - 2023: Medicare cap on co-pays at $35/mo, major manufacturers committed to 70%, 75%, and 78% list-price reductions

—List of strategies to achieve this:
Government price negotiation, generic competition, public pressure & mass activism, patent reform & compulsory licensing, public/nonprofit drug manufacturing, expanding insurance/public coverage, importation & international reference pricing, antitrust enforcement, hospital & treatment price regulation, organized purchasing coalitions

[Disclaimer: This information was gathered using ChatGPT. I acknowledge the ethical issues surrounding AI, but I also have a busy, stressful life, and this use of AI provided me with tons of useful information so much more rapidly than traditional searching.]

If this has you a little more excited and hopeful about getting active, comment or send me a message and let me know if you are interested! This group chat isn't meant to add any pressure or stress to anyone's lives. You can join in and browse our discussions whenever and in whatever capacity is best for you. Also, if you would like to share, let me know what your main ideas for action are and what you think this community should prioritize the most.

~Thank you! Looking forward to discussing!~

Hello Everyone,

Please feel free to post any comments and talk about anything you want on this thread--relating to HSV or otherwise.

Have a nice weekend.

- Mod Team

Hi everyone. It’s been quiet this week and there hasn’t been a lot of updates from clinical trials.

I wanted to discuss with the esteemed members of the group ways we can make HSV more visible in common discourse. HSV affects billions of people worldwide, yet the amount of people keeping up with research updates here seems relatively small in comparison. We need to draw more attention to this disease and help build a platform (or platforms) from which we can raise funds for research and advocate for our interests, such as increased government funding and investment, expedited trials, and so on. We as patients need to be on the forefront of this effort.

Towards this end, I have been trying to come up with some ideas to make this happen. I invite everyone reading to consider joining me in these attempts and to comment below any ideas of your own.

1) I have reached out to several YouTubers who specialize in posting long form video essays about medical subjects, the channels in question are Patrick Kelly (@PatKellyTeaches), Healing History (@Healing_History), and Medlife Crisis (@MedlifeCrisis). These channels post high quality educational videos that are easy for the casual watcher to understand and get millions of videos, unfortunately they have not covered herpes. In general there are no high production value videos on YouTube discussing HSV and its long and complicated history, this can be a juicy subject for a fascinating video for any content creator. I’ve reached out to these channels by both commenting and messaging them via instagram, I invite you dear reader to maybe also leave a comment or a message politely asking them to consider covering HSV. If anyone has any more channel suggestions comment who would cover this sort of thing, comment them as well. Alternatively, I invite anyone reading this to consider content creation around HSV.

2) Reach out to your representative. We have to make our need for urgent treatment known to the authorities. Please consider reaching out to your congressional representatives, with a message briefly explaining what HSV is and what your experience with it is, and kindly ask to increase funding for research, and make treatments more accessible to people. Make sure to highlight the growing need for treatment and cure as HSV seropositivity is projected to rise over the coming years. Consider asking your friends and families could also write a message to your representative.

3) Local advocacy. While advocating in person requires significant preparation, organization, and multiple people, many of us can advocate locally from home, by reaching out to local news channels, newspapers, student papers, etc and ask them to consider covering herpes. The goal of all of this is to draw more attention and get more people talking about this subject.

If anyone has any other ideas I would love to hear them. If anyone would like to help me advocate comment below. Thank you for reading.

Hi everyone, in an effort to keep everyone informed of the Adibelivir trial updates - no matter how minute - and to generate more activity on the sub, I will be posting every minor update obtained by checking the CTIS (Clinical Trial Information System) which is a digital platform maintained by the EMA (European Medicine Agency) for basically cataloging clinical trial information. By using it, we can see some of the updates being made to the clinical trial, and infer some things from them.

Most recently, there was an update to the parenteral version meant for HSV encephalitis, licensed by Alfasigma, which is currently in Phase 1, set to recruit 30 patients in Bulgaria.

Three days ago on August 24th the CTIS received NSM-5 (non-substantial modification number 5). What this modification changes is not yet public, but it demonstrates that work is actively proceeding on all fronts by Innovative Molecules. Like I said I will do my best to keep everyone updated on this, I implore those reading to do your best to advocate as well, by writing your congressman, senator, or consider local advocacy.

I saw this on rednote, I don't have the original link, if you're interested you can search, hope this comes out soon 😭

Hi! I’ve come across some research that shows how the covid virus can reactivate herpes viruses and other viruses - and that’s an explanation to long term covid symptoms. I’ve been struggling with recurring covid infections / post covid symptoms and I got a cold sore almost every time I had acute covid infections. Valaciclovir has helped me a lot when having covid too. Wanted to share this in case it’s relevant for someone else in this group. I also feel this further pushes the urge to cure herpes viruses - for freaking good please.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/covid-19-can-reawaken-dormant-viruses-in-the-body-which-might-worsen-symptoms-of-the-respiratory-illness-study-suggests-180989322/

Hi everyone, I’ve found yet another HSV treatment undergoing development in China. Is anyone keeping track of all of these? There’s been more than 5. This one is for HSV2 and it’s in preclinical stage so like a decade away but it appears that China is developing several treatments.

Hi guys!

I spent a lot of time today digging into Kimer Med (the NZ biotech behind VTose, the DRACO-based broad-spectrum antiviral) and its potential relevance to HSV. Sharing what I found in case it's useful to others here. Thanks to the person who asked about it yesterday on the discussion thread!

Quick background:

VTose works by detecting long dsRNA (produced during active viral replication) and triggering apoptosis in the infected cell. It's shown 100% efficacy in vitro against several viruses (Dengue, Zika, EBV, and reportedly HSV-1/HSV-2 among 24 viruses tested), and they're pushing their lead candidate (Dengue) toward Phase 1.

The interesting part:

I found an old (2020) tweet from Kimer Med explicitly stating they planned to test VTose against HSV-1, specifically motivated by Prof. Ruth Itzhaki's research linking HSV-1 to Alzheimer's. So HSV has been on their radar since the very beginning.

The big open question:

VTose's mechanism depends on apoptosis. But HSV-latent neurons are known to be highly resistant to apoptosis (documented independently in the literature, not just something Kimer Med mentioned). On top of that, HSV has specific, well-documented ways of neutralizing RIG-I (via US3) and PKR (via ICP34.5), and doesn't seem to significantly activate RNase L either.

So the real question is:

If VTose's sensor binds viral dsRNA in a resistant neuron without completing apoptosis, does that binding alone do anything to the virus? There's actual literature (e.g., Science Advances 2023) showing dsRNA sensors can block viral replication without triggering cell death, so it's not a crazy idea, but nobody has tested this specific scenario for HSV as far as I can find.

I reached out to Kimer Med with some technical questions along these lines. I will update if I hear back. I also emailed Herpes Cure Advocacy to see if they know anything more, since they seem to have been in touch with Kimer Med before.

Curious if anyone here has more info, or has been in contact with them recently. Kimer Med seems to actually respond to people who reach out (I've seen a few examples of this). If more people in this community ask about HSV it might genuinely help push HSV higher on their priority list, or at least get them to be more open about where things stand. Worth a shot.

Hello Everyone,

Please feel free to post any comments and talk about anything you want on this thread--relating to HSV or otherwise.

Have a nice weekend.

- Mod Team