Open AccessTranscriptional activation by EBV nuclear antigen 1 is essential for the expression of EBV's transforming genes
Author(s) -
Markus Altmann,
Dagmar Pich,
Romana Ruiss,
Jin-Dong Wang,
Bill Sugden,
Wolfgang Hammerschmidt
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
proceedings of the national academy of sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.011
H-Index - 771
eISSN - 1091-6490
pISSN - 0027-8424
DOI - 10.1073/pnas.0605985103
Subject(s) - biology , gene , epstein–barr virus , virology , transcription (linguistics) , antigen , viral replication , genome , virus , in vitro , gene expression , genetics , philosophy , linguistics
EBV is a paradigm for human tumor viruses because, although it infects most people benignly, it also can cause a variety of cancers. Both in vivo and in vitro, EBV infects B lymphocytes in G0, induces them to become blasts, and can maintain their proliferation in cell culture or in vivo as tumors. How EBV succeeds in these contrasting cellular environments in expressing its genes that control the host has not been explained. We have genetically dissected the EBV nuclear antigen 1 (EBNA1) gene that is required for replication of the viral genome, to elucidate its possible role in the transcription of viral genes. Strikingly, EBNA1 is essential to drive transcription of EBV's transforming genes after infection of primary B lymphocytes.
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