New vaccine for herpes reduces the number of outbreaks and lowers risk of the virus being passed on through sex

A new injection can treat herpes by charging up the body’s immune system to fight the virus, scientists believe. The vaccine – which would become the world’s first for the Herpes Simplex Virus type 2 virus (HSV-2) – was found to reduce the activity of the infection. Despite there being no cure for the sexually transmitted infection, symptoms can be controlled through medicine. Visibility of the virus on the skin around the genitals was reduced by 60 per cent as a result of the jab, researchers found. Given over a course of three injections, the effects of the GEN-003 vaccine last for up to one year and cut the number of outbreaks in sufferers. It works by stimulating antibodies in the bloodstream in an attempt to make the virus ineffective. The injection recruits white blood cells which circulate around our bodies searching for any infections. More than 500 million people suffer from the virus worldwide, and the...