Key points:
- Until now, there has been no drug or approved vaccination to specifically target Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) within the body.
- Researchers discovered that by infecting and transforming immune cells, EBV causes increased production of an enzyme called IDO1.
- The team hopes that using IDO1 inhibitors can reduce the transformation of immune cells and prevent the development of EBV-associated diseases.
Most of the adult population are carriers of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), and they usually do not experience symptoms. However, acute infection with the virus can cause glandular fever and the virus has the potential to cause cancer in humans. To date, no drug or approved vaccination can specifically target EBV within the body.
Now, a new study, published in Science, reveals a promising starting point for thwarting EBV.
Researchers focused on a group of patients who developed EBV-triggered blood cancer following organ transplantation. They determined how immune cells infected with EBV are reprogrammed in a process called “transformation.” Transformation is critical for the infection to become chronic and cause subsequent diseases, including cancer.
The team found that the virus triggers infected cells to increase production of an enzyme called IDO1, which leads to greater mitochondria energy production for rapid proliferation of reprogrammed cells. In fact, EBV upregulated the enzyme IDO1 months before post-transplant lymphoma was even diagnosed.
As a result of prior studies, there are already clinically tested IDO1 inhibitors available to test in the context of dampening EBV infection and EBV-associated diseases. In experiments with mice, IDO1 inhibition with these existing drugs reduced the transformation of immune cells and prevented the development of lymphoma. The team hopes this second chance for IDO1 inhibitors can present a new preventative treatment option for EBV, particularly for vulnerable transplant patients.
“In transplant patients, it’s standard practice to use drugs against various viruses,” explained Christoph Hess, professor at the University of Basel. “Until now, there’s been nothing specific for preventing or treating Epstein-Barr virus associated diseases.”