Vaginal Lactobacillusgasseri CMUL57 can inhibit herpes simplex type 2 but not Coxsackievirus B4E2

This study aimed at demonstrating the antiviral activity of Lactobacillus gasseri CMUL57 (L. gasseri CMUL57), L. acidophilus CMUL67 and L. plantarum CMUL140 against herpes simplex type 2 (HSV-2) and Coxsackievirus B4E2 (CVB4E2), which are enveloped and naked viruses, respectively. These lactobacilli were non-cytotoxic and were able to reduce the cytopathic effect induced by HSV-2 in Vero cell monolayers. However, lactobacilli were not active against CVB4E2. Tested lactobacilli displayed anti-HSV-2 activity when they were co-incubated with the virus prior to inoculating the mixture to Vero cell monolayers. The detection of HSV-2 DNA by PCR in pellets of bacteria/virus mixtures let us to hypothesize that anti-HSV-2 activity of lactobacilli resulted from the viruses’ entrapment. This study showed the capabilities of vaginal lactobacilli to inhibit enveloped viruses such as HSV-2.