HU-PBL-SCID MICE - AN IN-VIVO MODEL OF EPSTEIN-BARR-VIRUS-DEPENDENT LYMPHOPROLIFERATIVE DISEASE

The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) exists in most humans as a lifelong laten t infection established in host B cells after a primary viral encounte r. In immunosuppressed individuals, such as post-transplant patients, the presence of EBV-infected B cells may lead to lymphoproliferative d isease. Injection of human peripheral blood lymphocytes from EBV-posit ive donors into mice with severe combined immunodeficiency induces hum an lymphoproliferative disease in the recipient closely resembling tha t of human posttransplant patients. This xenochimeric human-mouse mode l is increasingly being used to elucidate the mechanisms of EBV-specif ic lymphomagenesis and to assess novel therapeutic approaches.