Detection of an epstein‐barr‐virus variant in T‐cell‐lymphoma tissues identical to the distinct strain observed in nasopharyngeal carcinoma in the taiwanese population

Abstract

An EBV variant has been identified in NPC tissues in Taiwan. This EBV variant contains a point mutation in exon I of the LMP I gene. This mutation results in the loss of an XhoI site at nt 169,426, which is present in strain B95-8. In addition, this variant contains a 30-bp deletion in exon 3 of the gene. The recent demonstration of the prevalence of EBV-containing nasal and peripheral T-cell lymphoma in this region drove us to evaluate the presence of this NPC-EBV strain in 7 cases of T-cell lymphoma, as well as in 48 NPC tissues, 2 cases of Hodgkin's disease and I B-cell lymphoma. Four samples of normal lymph node tissue, 40 of normal nasopharynx tissue and 78 throat washings of healthy individuals were included for comparison. We used sequence-specific primers and the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method to amplify LMP I gene fragments containing these variations. Mutations were then confirmed by restriction-enzyme digestion and the DNA sequencing analysis. Our results showed that 57 of 58 tumor-tissues samples were EBV-positive. Among them, 56, including 6 T-cell-lymphoma samples, belonged to the NPC strain. This strain of EBV was also present in 92% of EBV-positive normal nasopharynx tissues and in 84% of EBV-positive throat washings of the healthy individuals tested. These results suggest that the NPC-EBV strain is prominently present in Taiwan.

Gold(III) porphyrin complex is more potent than cisplatin in inhibiting growth of nasopharyngeal carcinoma in vitro and in vivo

“…27,29 However, none of the NPC cells tested in previous reports have expression of EBV genome or detectable residential virus after prolonged propagation in culture. 34,35 Given that EBV DNA is expressed in the majority of primary NPC biopsies and also in tumors found in Southern China, [36][37][38] results from the use of EBV (1) tumor cells and the demonstration of their responsiveness to [Au(TPP)]Cl become more clinically relevant and significant. Furthermore, our titration experiments also indicate a safety concentration window that allows [Au(TPP)]Cl to exert its cytotoxicity against tumor cells without significantly affecting the survival of PBMCs and fibroblasts (Fig.…”

Genomic Sequence Analysis of Epstein-Barr Virus Strain GD1 from a Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Patient

“…Most LMP1 genes derived from Chinese NPC biopsy specimens are marked by the 30-bp deletion (nt 168266 to 168295) in the carboxyl terminus, a loss of the XhoI site in the amino terminus, and multiple base substitutions in the coding region (9,10,22,25). Although the 30-bp deletion in LMP1 was detected in 100% of 48 NPC biopsy specimens in Taiwan (8), in 34 of 37 NPC biopsy specimens in Hong Kong (11), and in 16 of 21 NPC biopsy specimens in Guangxi and Shanghai (51), Zhang et al (56) reported that the 30-bp deletion in LMP1 represents a geographical-or race-associated polymorphism rather than an NPC disease phenotype-associated polymorphism. Recently, the consistent sequence variation in LMP1 has been used to distinguish the various EBV strains, which were termed strains China 1, China 2, Med, China3, Alaskan, NC, and B95.8.…”

Follicular Dendritic Cell Tumor of the Liver: A Clinicopathologic and Epstein-Barr Virus Study of Two Cases

“…The significance of the 30-bp deletion and six point mutations of the LMP-1 gene remains unclear. The deletion strain is prevalent in Taiwan, is not restricted to nasopharyngeal carcinoma, and was also found in throat washings of healthy individuals (21). Therefore, the clinicopathologic significance of the 30-bp deletion of Exon 3 of the LMP-1 gene in FDC tumors warrants further investigation.…”