Infectious mononucleosis and Epstein-Barr virus

PubMed, the Internet portal of biomedical and life sciences literature, indexed an interesting article, entitled Infectious mononucleosis and Epstein-Barr virus. (Comp Immunol Microbiol Infect Dis. 2007 May;30(3):153-62. Epub 2007 Jan 22). Authors are Vetsika EK and Callan M from the Division of Medicine, Imperial College, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, 369 Fulham Road, London, SW10 9NH, UK. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a herpesvirus that infects over 90% of the human population worldwide. It is transmitted between individuals in saliva, and establishes replicative infection within the oropharynx as well as life-long latent infection of B cells. Primary EBV infection occurs during childhood and is asymptomatic. If delayed until adolescence, it can be associated with the clinical syndrome of infectious mononucleosis – an illness characterised by fevers, pharyngitis, lymphadenopathy and malaise. EBV infection is also associated with the development of EBV-associated lymphoid or epithelial cell malignancies in a small proportion of individuals. This review focuses on primary EBV infection in individuals suffering from infectious mononucleosis. To access the full abstract of the article, click here.