Analysis of EBV latency by EBER in situ hybridization in nasopharyngeal carcinoma Spanish patients.
BACKGROUND
The aim of this study was to analyse the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) latency by detecting the EBV-associated latent small nuclear RNAs (EBER), in a group of biopsies from Spanish patients with diagnosed nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).


METHODS
NPC paraffin samples with the presence of EBV demonstrated by non-isotopic in situ hybridization (NISH) and nested-PCR, were analysed for EBV latency using EBER in situ hybridization (EBER-ISH).


RESULTS
We detected EBER in 83.3% of samples (10 out of 12 cases), demonstrating the relationships between EBV genome presence with the latent viral infection. We correlated these results of EBV-DNA and -RNA presence with the immunoexpression of latent membrane protein-1 (LMP-1), a viral oncogenic protein (8 out of 12 cases or 66.6%).


CONCLUSIONS
These results indicate that all the types of NPC are variants of an EBV-associated malignancy and that viral latency is a critical phenomenon in the development of this neoplasia.
Burgos
J S
JS
Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa-C.S.I.C., Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Cantoblanco, Spain. jburgos@cbm.uam.es
Vera-Sempere
F J
FJ
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D020031:Epstein-Barr Virus Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000821:virology*; D005260:Female; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D017403:In Situ Hybridization; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009303:Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000821:virology*; D012342:RNA, Small Nuclear / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D014763:Viral Matrix Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis; D017735:Virus Latency / Q000235:genetics
C037662:EBV-associated membrane antigen, Epstein-Barr virus; D012342:RNA, Small Nuclear; D014763:Viral Matrix Proteins