title: Geographic Population Structure in Epstein-Barr Virus Revealed by Comparative Genomics.
abstract: Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) latently infects the majority of the human population and is implicated as a causal or contributory factor in numerous diseases. We sequenced 27 complete EBV genomes from a cohort of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients and healthy controls from Italy, although no variants showed a statistically significant association with MS. Taking advantage of the availability of ∼130 EBV genomes with known geographical origins, we reveal a striking geographic distribution of EBV sub-populations with distinct allele frequency distributions. We discuss mechanisms that potentially explain these observations, and their implications for understanding the association of EBV with human disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Matteo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chiara
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biomembranes and Bioenergetics, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Caterina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Manzari
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biomembranes and Bioenergetics, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lionetti
authors.affiliation: Centre for Experimental Neurological Therapies, S. Andrea Hospital-site, Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Rosella
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mechelli
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center/Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Eleni
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Anastasiadou
authors.affiliation: Centre for Experimental Neurological Therapies, S. Andrea Hospital-site, Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chiara Buscarinu
authors.affiliation: Centre for Experimental Neurological Therapies, S. Andrea Hospital-site, Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ristori
authors.affiliation: Centre for Experimental Neurological Therapies, S. Andrea Hospital-site, Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health and Sensory Organs (NESMOS), Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Salvetti
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biomembranes and Bioenergetics, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Bari, Italy.|Department of Biosciences, Biotechnology and Biopharmaceutics, University of Bari, "A. Moro", Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Ernesto
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Picardi
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biomembranes and Bioenergetics, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Bari, Italy.|Department of Biosciences, Biotechnology and Biopharmaceutics, University of Bari, "A. Moro", Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Anna Maria
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: D'Erchia
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biomembranes and Bioenergetics, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Bari, Italy.|Department of Biosciences, Biotechnology and Biopharmaceutics, University of Bari, "A. Moro", Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: Graziano
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pesole
authors.affiliation: Department of Biosciences, University of Milan, Milan, Italy david.horner@unimi.it.|Institute of Biomembranes and Bioenergetics, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: David S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Horner
mesh_terms: D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002460:Cell Line; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D020031:Epstein-Barr Virus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D005787:Gene Frequency; D016679:Genome, Viral; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D008297:Male; D020529:Multiple Sclerosis, Relapsing-Remitting / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000821:virology*; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic
keywords: Epstein-Barr virus; comparative genomics; genome sequence; population structure