Epstein-Barr virus, frequently referred to as EBV, is a member of the herpesvirus family and one of the most common human viruses. The virus occurs worldwide, and most people become infected with EBV sometime during their lives. In the United States, as many as 95% of adults between 35 and 40 years of age have been infected. Infants become susceptible to EBV as soon as maternal antibody protection (present at birth) disappears. Many children become infected with EBV, and these infections usually cause no symptoms or are indistinguishable from the other mild, brief illnesses of childhood. In the United States and in other developed countries, many persons are not infected with EBV in their childhood years. When infection with EBV occurs during adolescence or young adulthood, it causes infectious mononucleosis 35% to 50% of the time.
Symptoms of infectious mononucleosis are fever, sore throat, and swollen lymph glands. Sometimes, a swollen spleen or liver involvement may develop. Heart problems or involvement of the central nervous system occurs only rarely, and infectious mononucleosis is almost never fatal. There are no known associations between active EBV infection and problems during pregnancy, such as miscarriages or birth defects. Although the symptoms of infectious mononucleosis usually resolve in 1 or 2 months, EBV remains dormant or latent in a few cells in the throat and blood for the rest of the person's life. Periodically, the virus can reactivate and is commonly found in the saliva of infected persons. This reactivation usually occurs without symptoms of illness.
Now, scientists at The Wistar Institute have discovered a potential target for gastric cancers associated with Epstein-Barr Virus; study results were published in the journal mBio.
An increase in proof has been found that astronauts are highly vulnerable to infections while in space. For instance, astronauts on board the International Space Station (ISS) generally suffer from skin rashes, and also respiratory and non-respiratory diseases.
The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is easily spread through bodily fluids, primarily saliva, such as kissing, shared drinks or using the same eating utensils.
In 1868, French physician Jean-Martin Charcot, known as the founder of modern neurology, defined a disease entity in which multiple plaques formed in the brain and spinal cord, with varying physical symptoms, called Sclérose en plaques, or in English as multiple sclerosis (MS).
Numerous cancers have been related to the viruses Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV). For the first time, UNC School of Medicine researchers have shown that these viruses elude the innate immune response by using a human protein called barrier-to-autointegration factor 1, or BAF, which enables the viruses to propagate and cause disease.
When tested in a lab setting using human cells, a panel of experimental monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) that target various Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) sites prevented infection.
Long COVID symptoms, such as weariness, brain fog, and rashes, may be caused by Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) reactivation because of the inflammatory response to coronavirus infection, which occurs in about 30% of individuals following recovery from initial COVID-19 infection.
The Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), an affiliate of City of Hope, has identified a specific genetic target that could help explain the tremendous variation in how sick those infected with COVID-19 become.
The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), one of the most common human viruses, is associated with about 8-10 per cent of stomach -- or gastric -- cancers, the third leading cause of cancer death globally.
Human-resident microbes can influence both health and disease. Investigating the microbiome using next-generation sequencing technology has revealed examples of mutualism and conflict between microbes and humans.