These lesions are a neuropathological characteristic of viral CNS infections, especially encephalitis caused by HSV-1 and HCMV; being the result of microglial cells involved in phagocytosis of infected brain cells killed by CD8+ cytotoxic T-lymphocytes (Chen et al. 2019; Langford et al. 2002; Ludlow et al. 2016; Nebuloni et al. 2000; Rock et al. 2004; Tröscher et al. 2019). The gene discussed is CD8A; the disease is encephalitis.