A Comparative Study of Epstein-Barr Virus Genomes Detected in Tumor, Nasopharyngeal Swab, and Saliva Samples From Patients With Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma.
Journal
The Journal of infectious diseases
Journal Volume
232
Journal Issue
3
Start Page
735
End Page
744
ISSN
1537-6613
Date Issued
2025-09-15
Author(s)
Liang, Jingtong
Chen, Yanhong
Hsu, Wan-Lun
Yu, Kelly J
Feng, Qisheng
Ye, Xiaoping
Krushkal, Julia
Hildesheim, Allan
Xu, Miao
Liu, Zhiwei
Abstract
Background. Specific genetic variations of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) have been linked to nasopharyngeal (NP) carcinoma (NPC). Because EBV is shed through saliva, saliva samples are commonly used for EBV genotyping in studies of EBV-associated diseases. However, it remains uncertain whether infection with the same EBV strains occurs across different tissues within a host and whether EBV detected in saliva accurately represents the strain in diseased tissues. Methods. We conducted whole-genome sequencing of EBV from paired biopsy tissues, saliva samples, and NP swab samples from 33 patients with newly diagnosed NPC to determine the genetic concordance of EBV strains across different tissue types within the same individual. Results. Phylogenetic and pairwise genetic distance analysis revealed a high degree of intrahost concordance, indicating infection with the same EBV strains among different samples within the host. Multiple EBV infections were identified in 6% of saliva samples, compared with 3% in tumor tissues. Notably, NPC tumor EBV strains were consistently detected in paired saliva and swab samples. For multiple infections in saliva and NP swab samples, EBV variants of the major strain showed higher genetic concordance with the variants detected in NPC tumors than with variants of the minor strain. Conclusions. Our study highlight the genetic consistency of EBV across tumor, NP swab, and saliva samples, supporting the use of saliva as a reliable source for EBV sequencing and genotyping in future epidemiological studies.
Subjects
EBV genetic variation
Epstein-Barr virus
intrahost concordance
nasopharyngeal carcinoma
virus whole-genome sequencing
SDGs
Type
journal article