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Pseudorabies Virus (PRV)
PRV is a member of the alpha-herpesvirus family. It naturally infects neurons and spreads retrogradely across synapses, traveling from the postsynaptic neuron to the presynaptic neuron. The virus is capable of crossing multiple synapses, making it ideal for tracing complex circuits that involve multiple layers of interconnected neurons. The PRV used in research is typically genetically modified to express fluorescent proteins (such as GFP, RFP) or other markers that allow for visualization of infected neurons. The spread of PRV is time-dependent, meaning that the number of labeled neurons and the extent of circuit tracing are determined by the time post-injection. Early time points reveal direct, first-order connections, while later time points reveal higher-order, polysynaptic connections. Researchers can control the extent of tracing by adjusting the time after virus injection before examining the brain tissue (See Figure 3).
PRV is particularly useful for tracing long-range neural pathways and identifying networks that control specific functions or behaviors, such as motor control, sensory processing, or emotional regulation. PRV can also be applied in the study of neurodevelopment, neurological injury and recovery model, and pathways between peripheral organs and the central nervous system (See Case Study Example 2).
Figure 3. 48 hours after PRV-hUbC-EGFP injection into the olfactory tubercle (TU), retrograde trans-synaptic labeling was observed in upstream brain regions, including M1, M2, Aco, Piri, OB, and VTA, indicating that these brain regions have direct or indirect projections to the TU.
PRV Product List
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Case Study
Example 1: Reverse transsynaptic tracing in dorsal striatum
Experimental Animals: C57BL/6J mice
Viruses Used: PRV152-GFP
Experimental Methods and Results: PRV152-GFP was injected into the bilateral dorsal striatum (DS) of C57BL/6J mice, and retrograde multi-synaptic spread of PRV152-GFP was observed in the R-NG, DMV, NTS, AP, PBNdl, and PBNm. This further confirmed the existence of the R-NG → PBNdl → SNc pathway, based on previous findings (Han W, et al., Cell, 2018).
Figure 4. Validation of the R-NG→PBNdl→SNc pathway (Han W, et al., Cell, 2018)
Example 2: Reverse trans-synaptic tracing of bladder wall nerves
Experimental Animals: C57BL/6J mice
Viruses Used: PRV-EGFP, PRV-RFP
Experimental Methods and Results: After injecting PRV-EGFP into the bladder wall of C57BL/6J mice, EGFP signals were observed in layer 5 pyramidal neurons of the S1/M1 cortex. When injecting PRV-EGFP and PRV-RFP respectively into the right and left bladder walls of mice, co-expression of EGFP and RFP signals was observed in cortical S1/M1L5 pyramidal neurons. This indicates that PRV-EGFP and PRV-RFP retrogradely and equally spread to the layer 5 pyramidal neurons of the S1/M1 cortex, suggesting that these neurons are upstream brain neurons governing the bladder wall.
Figure 5. Identification of the M1L5 pyramidal neurons in the upper bladder (Yao J, et al., NatNeurosc, 2018)
Example 3: Investigating the Multi-Level Input Network of Two Specific Brain Regions Across the Whole Brain
Experimental Animals: C57BL/6J mice
Viruses Used: PRV152-GFP, PRV614-RFP
Experimental Methods and Results: PRV152-GFP and PRV614-RFP were injected into the left and right olfactory bulbs of C57BL/6 mice respectively. In the locus coeruleus, several neurons were found to be co-labeled by both green and red fluorescence, indicating that these neurons are involved in regulating information processing in both sides of olfactory bulbs. Similarly, this method can be used to identify the common first-order or even multi-level upstream neurons of two specific brain nuclei, revealing which types of neurons in the brain are simultaneously controlling the functions of those two regions.
Figure 6. Distribution of fluoresence expression in difference brain regions.
Learn About Available Viruses at Biohippo
Rabies Virus (RV)
The Rabies virus (RV) is used for trans-monosynaptic labeling in the retrograde direction.
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Pseudorabies Virus (PRV)
PRV is a member of the alpha-herpesvirus family. It naturally infects neurons and spreads retrogradely across synapses, traveling from the postsynaptic neuron to the presynaptic neuron....
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Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV)
Herpes simplex virus thymine kinase (HSV-TK) plays an important role in acute ganglion replication and recurrent latent ganglion infections following HSV infection of neurons (Coen et al., PNAS, 1989)...
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