Aw ak ening the sleeping giant: Epstein-Barr virus reactiv a tion b y biological agents

Abstract

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) may cause harm in imm unocompr omised conditions or on stress stimuli. Various chemical agents have been utilized to induce the lytic cycle in EBV-infected cells. Howev er, apart fr om chemical agents and external stress stimuli, certain infectious agents may reactivate the EBV. In addition, the acute infection of other pathogens may provide suitable conditions for EBV to thri v e mor e and planting the roots for EBV-associated pathologies. Various bacteria such as periodontal pathogens like Aggregatibacter , Helicobacter pylori , etc. have shown to induce EBV r eacti v ation either by triggering host cells dir ectl y or indir ectl y. Viruses such as Human simplex virus-1 (HSV) induce EBV r eacti v ation by HSV US3 kinase while other viruses such as HIV, hepatitis virus, and even nov el SARS-CoV-2 hav e also been r e ported to cause EBV r eacti v ation. The eukar y otic pathogens suc h as Plasmodium falciparum and Aspergillus flavus can also r eacti v ate EBV either by surface protein interaction or as an impact of aflatoxin, r especti v el y. To highlight the under explor ed niche of EBV r eacti v ation by biological a gents, we hav e compr ehensi v el y pr esented the r elated information in this re vie w. This ma y help to shedding the light on the resear c h gaps as well as to unveil yet unexplored mechanisms of EBV reactivation.