EPSTEIN-BARR-VIRUS (EBV) GENE-EXPRESSION IN EBV-POSITIVE PERIPHERAL T-CELL LYMPHOMAS

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) DNA has been detected in peripheral T-cell ly mphomas. In this study, analysis of the EBV termini indicated that the infection was clonal and nonpermissive. Analysis of viral expression detected the processed, spliced mRNAs representing EBNA1, LMP1, LMP2, and BamHI A transcripts in all EBV-positive peripheral T-cell lymphoma s. The LMP1 protein was detected by immunofluorescence in a single spe cimen. In contrast, neither the EBNA2 protein nor the spliced EBNA2 mR NA were detected. These data indicate that EBV-infected T-cell lymphom as are clonal expansions of a single EBV-infected cell with a pattern of gene expression which is distinct from that detected in Burkitt's l ymphomas or posttransplant lymphomas but similar to viral expression i n nasopharyngeal carcinomas.