Reduced prevalence of Epstein-Barr virus-related lymphocryptovirus infection in sera from a new world primate

Abstract

The recent discovery of an Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-related lymphocryptovirus (LCV) naturally infecting common marmosets demonstrated that gamma-1 herpesviruses are not limited to human and Old World nonhuman primate hosts. We developed serologic assays to detect serum antibodies against lytic- and latent-infection marmoset LCV antigens in order to perform the first seroepidemiologic study of LCV infection in New World primates. In three different domestic colonies and in animals recently captured from the wild, we found that the seroprevalence of marmoset LCV infection was not as ubiquitous as with EBV or Old World LCV. These biologic differences in LCV infection of New World versus human and Old World primate hosts correlate with the evolution of the LCV viral gene repertoire.

FIG. 1.

Alignment of the predicted amino acid sequence for the small viral capsid antigen from EBV (BFRF3; accession number CAD53401), rhesus LCV (rhBFRF3; accession number YP_067949), and marmoset LCV (ORF59; accession number NP_733913). Conserved amino acid residues are boxed, and immunoreactive peptides used for serologic assays are underlined.

FIG. 2.

Enzyme immunoassay results for marmoset serum antibodies against marmoset LCV (A) small viral capsid antigen and (B) the EBNA-1 homologue (ORF39). The same serum samples from 235 common marmosets at the NEPRC were assayed for reactivity against both antigens. EIA plates were coated with either synthetic peptides for sVCA or affinity-purified vaccinia virus-expressed recombinant ORF39. Serum samples were diluted 1:100 and assayed in duplicate. Anti-human IgG antibodies coupled to horseradish peroxidase (Jackson Laboratories) were used to detect marmoset antibodies. EIA wells were developed with o-phenylenediamine dihydrochloride substrate and read at 450 nm. Cutoffs (dotted line) were set at three times above background wells with no serum added.