Epstein-Barr virus is not detected in mucosal lichen planus

Abstract

BackgroundLichen planus (LP) is a chronic inflammatory, immunological, mucocutaneous disease can affect skin, genital and oral mucosa. Oral lichen planus (OLP) is the most common noninfectious, chronic inflammatory oral disease affecting 1-2% of the general adult population. World Health Organization (WHO) classifies OLP as a potentially malignant disorder. Epstein Barr virus or human herpesvirus-4, is a member of the herpes virus family and one of the most ubiquitous viruses known to human, infecting approximately 90% of the world’s adult population. The virus often infects B lymphocytes resulting in a wide spectrum of mucocutaneous and systemic diseases, ranging from mild lesions to aggressive malignancies. The aim of this study was to investigate expression of the EBV encoded RNAs EBER1 and EBER2 in oral and genital lichen planus and compare results with normal tissues in situ hybridization which is considered the golden standard for detection of EBER.Material and MethodsA total of 68 biopsies, 25 oral LP, 26 genital LP, 10 oral controls and finally 7 genital controls were analysed using situ hybridization.ResultsAll samples had RNA as shown by the control slide, whereas no case contained neither EBER1 nor EBER2.ConclusionsBased on results from our study EBV is not involved in aetiology of lichen planus. Key words:Mucosal lichen planus, Epstein - Barr virus.

The association between Epstein‐Barr virus and oral lichen planus: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

“…The general characteristics of the included studies are summarized in Table 1. Ten case‐control studies 13‐16,20‐23,28,29 comprising 690 subjects (386 OLP cases and 304 healthy controls) were included in the present review; of these, 8 studies were eligible for the meta‐analysis 13‐16,20,21,28,29 . The studies were published between 1996 and 2018.…”

“…Two studies were conducted in Sweden, 16,23 two studies in Iran, 20,22 one study in Denmark, 13 one study in Turkey, 14 one study in Ireland, 29 one study in Hungary, 15 one study in Brazil, 15 and one study in India 28 . Seven studies 13,15,16,20‐23 reported gender of the participants, in which females comprised two thirds of subjects. The age of the included participants ranged between 18 and 81 years.…”

“…The detection of EBV was evaluated using tissue samples in 7 studies, 14,16,20‐23,29 serum sample in two studies, 13,28 and exfoliated cells in one study 15 . Laboratory methods to detect EBV were highly variable across the studies: in situ hybridization in one study, 23 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in 5 studies, 15,16,20‐22,29 enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in 2 studies, 13,28 and immunohistochemistry in one study 14 (Table 1).…”

“…Contrarily, studies by Veira et al 21 and Sahebjamee et al 22 did not find a significant association between EBV and OLP 21,22 . Furthermore, a more recent study investigating the presence of EBV in OLP patients using the in situ hybridization technique (ISH) did not detect EBV neither in OLP cases nor in controls 23 . The authors concluded that EBV is not involved in the pathogenesis of OLP.…”

Possible Mechanisms Involved in the Cooccurrence of Oral Lichen Planus and Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis

“…Infectious factors can also result in immune abnormalities [67]. Hepatitis C virus [68,69] and human herpesvirus 6 [70,71] are associated with both OLP and HT, while other studies have reported conflicting results regarding the association of Epstein-Barr virus [72,73] and Helicobacter pylori [74,75] with these diseases.…”