Simultaneous presence of EBNA‐positive and colony‐forming cells in peripheral blood of patients with infectious mononucleosis

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Abstract
EBNA‐positive lymphoblast cells were detected in 0.1 to 0.9% of the T‐cell‐depleted lymphocytes obtained from peripheral blood samples of five patients with infectious mononucleosis (IM). The same blood specimens from four of the five patients contained cells that formed EBNA‐positive colonies in soft agar containing EBV antibodies. The ratio of the colony formers to EBNA‐positive cells was higher in blood samples taken early in the disease than in those obtained in later stages of the disease. The present results strongly suggest that EBV‐transformed cells are present in the peripheral circulation of IM patients and that such cells can directly give rise to immortalized cetl lines in vitro.

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