Epstein-Barr Virus DNA Recombination and Loss in Sporadic Burkitt's Lymphoma

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Abstract
Epstein-Barr virus (EBY) antigens in tumor tissue define associations of virus with human malignancies and provide clues as to mechanisms of viral oncogenesis. In Burkitt's lymphoma, EBY markers are absent from 85% of sporadic cases and 4% of endemic (African) cases, raising questions as to the exact role of EBY in the disease. Standard screening criteria may be insufficient to determine the EBY status of all tumors. One of 9 tumors from American patients expressed EBY nuclear antigen 1 (EBNA1) and contained standard episomal EBY DNA, making this series consistent with the 15% EBY association traditionally ascribed to sporadic Burkitt's lymphoma. Surprisingly, 3 tumors without detectable EBNAI contained partial EBY genomes. Identification of defective, integrated viral DNAin sometumors indicates greater involvementof virus in sporadic Burkitt's lymphoma than previously documented and suggests a process of viral DNA rearrangement and loss during malignant progression most consistent with an initiating role for EBY in tumorigenesis.

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