title: Epstein-Barr virus and the somatic hypermutation of immunoglobulin genes in Burkitt's lymphoma cells.
abstract: It has been suggested that Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) might suppress antibody maturation either by facilitating bypass of the germinal center reaction or by inhibiting hypermutation directly. However, by infecting the Burkitt's lymphoma (BL) cell line Ramos, which hypermutates constitutively and can be considered a transformed analogue of a germinal center B cell, with EBV as well as by transfecting it with selected EBV latency genes, we demonstrate that expression of EBV gene products does not lead to an inhibition of hypermutation. Moreover, we have identified two natural EBV-positive BL cell lines (ELI-BL and BL16) that hypermutate constitutively. Thus, contrary to expectations, EBV gene products do not appear to affect somatic hypermutation.
authors.affiliation: MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge CB2 2QH, United Kingdom. rsharris@mrc-lmb.cam.ac.uk
authors.forename: R S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Harris
authors.forename: D S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Croom-Carter
authors.forename: A B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Rickinson
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Neuberger
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001483:Base Sequence; D002051:Burkitt Lymphoma / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology*; D019309:Epstein-Barr Virus Nuclear Antigens / Q000032:analysis / Q000502:physiology; D005803:Genes, Immunoglobulin; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000032:analysis; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation; D011947:Receptors, Antigen, B-Cell / Q000032:analysis; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured; D014763:Viral Matrix Proteins / Q000032:analysis / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: C037662:EBV-associated membrane antigen, Epstein-Barr virus; D019309:Epstein-Barr Virus Nuclear Antigens; D007075:Immunoglobulin M; D011947:Receptors, Antigen, B-Cell; D014763:Viral Matrix Proteins; C417029:EBV-encoded nuclear antigen 1