Chronological changes in Epstein-Barr virus genome and subsets of peripheral mononuclear cells in a case of HLH

Yukayo Ukeba-Terashita, Yoshinori Saita, Yoshinori Ito, Hirokazu Kanegane, Hiroshi Kimura, Ichiro Kobayashi

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DOI: 10.4236/ojped.2011.13008                

Abstract

Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a rare disorder characterized by high grade fever, heaptos-plenomegaly, lymphadenopathy and cytopenia in association with hypercytokinemia and macrophage activation. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a common cause of HLH particularly in Asian countries. Although EBV usually infects B cells and causes infectious mononucleosis, it is detected predominantly in CD8⁺ T cells in EBV-associated HLH. In the present study we found the EBV genome in various lineages of the lymphoid cells including T, B, and natural killer cells in a 14-month-old boy with mild EBV-associated HLH. Furthermore, chronological changes in the copy number of EBV-DNA in each lineage are reported. Profound decrease in the number of peripheral natural killer cells at the early stage could be involved in the development of HLH.

Keywords

Epstein-Barr Virus; Hemophagocytic Lymphohistio Cytosis; Natural Killer Cell

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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