Abstract
Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) is associated with a number of lymphoid malignancies. However, the malignancy showing the most consistent association with the virus is undifferentiated Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma (NPC).
Underlying the viral involvement in these EBV-associated diseases appears to be the capacity of EBV to transform the growth of human B cells, a phenomenon most easily studied in vitro where experimental infection of resting B lymphocytes leads to cellular activation and to the growth of permanently virus-transformed lymphoblastoid cell lines.
EBV not only induces growth transformation of human B lymphocytes, but has more recently been shown to enhance B cell survival under suboptimal conditions in which growth is inhibited.
The interplay between EBV infection and expression of cellular genes has important implications for the pathogenesis of virus-associated malignant disease. We are now studying the possible involvement of FcERII/CD23 and ADF in the enhancement of cell survival under suboptimal conditions.
