title: Comprehensive profiling of Epstein-Barr virus-encoded miRNA species associated with specific latency types in tumor cells.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is an etiological cause of many human lymphocytic and epithelial malignancies. EBV expresses different genes that are associated with three latency types. To date, as many as 44 EBV-encoded miRNA species have been found, but their comprehensive profiles in the three types of latent infection that are associated with various types of tumors are not well documented.
  
  
  METHODS
  In the present study, we utilized poly (A)-tailed quantitative real-time RT-PCR in combination with microarray analysis to measure the relative abundances of viral miRNA species in a subset of representative lymphoid and epithelial tumor cells with various EBV latency types.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Our findings showed that the miR-BHRF1 and miR-BART families were expressed differentially in a tissue- and latency type-dependent manner. Specifically, in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) tissues and the EBV-positive cell line C666-1, the miR-BART family accounted for more than 10% of all detected miRNAs, suggesting that these miRNAs have important roles in maintaining latent EBV infections and in driving NPC tumorigenesis. In addition, EBV miRNA-based clustering analysis clearly distinguished between the three distinct EBV latency types, and our results suggested that a switch from type I to type III latency might occur in the Daudi BL cell line.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our data provide a comprehensive profiling of the EBV miRNA transcriptome that is associated with specific tumor cells in the three types of latent EBV infection states. EBV miRNA species represent a cluster of non-encoding latency biomarkers that are differentially expressed in tumor cells and may help to distinguish between the different latency types.
authors.forename: Hong-Jie
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Tie-Jun
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Chang-Fu
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Li-Xia
authors.initials: LX
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.forename: Ran-Yi
authors.initials: RY
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Guang-Da
authors.initials: GD
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Qiao-Qiao
authors.initials: QQ
authors.lastname: Chu
authors.forename: Jia-Ling
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Na
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Hong-Bing
authors.initials: HB
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Zhen-Yu
authors.initials: ZY
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China; Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou 510060, China. qianchn@sysucc.org.cn.
authors.forename: Chao-Nan
authors.initials: CN
authors.lastname: Qian
authors.forename: Bi-Jun
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Huang
mesh_terms: D001706:Biopsy; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007945:Leukemia, Lymphoid / Q000821:virology; D035683:MicroRNAs / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*; D046228:Microarray Analysis; D009375:Neoplasms, Glandular and Epithelial / Q000821:virology; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; D017735:Virus Latency
chemical_list: D035683:MicroRNAs; D012367:RNA, Viral