When Nerds Get Happy

Why I’m Thrilled

I’m totally hyped about the discovery that the Epstein-Barr virus is implicated in multiple sclerosis (MS). Seriously! Is it because I’m a self-confessed nerd? Maybe. But it’s more than that. Let me try to explain. Perhaps you’ll get jazzed, too.

My First Job

Way back (way, way back) when I got my first serious science job, I worked at the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, Oxford University, England, under Dr. James S. Porterfield, a rather famous virologist. He offered that I turn my work into a doctorate, but Catherine happened—different story.

Anyway, my research assignment was to try to find a virus that might cause MS. I obtained blood from MS patients and looked for antibodies to different viruses. Interestingly, many of the patients had elevated levels of antibodies to dog distemper.

Eventually, way after Catherine was born, the scientific community discovered that MS is an autoimmune disorder, where many antibody levels are elevated. 

It’s a Virus!

But now it appears that old Dr. Porterfield (he was old even then) was right. The culprit IS a virus, after all, one that the vast majority of us get infected with as babies. We never rid ourselves of this virus and intermittently shed it in our saliva for life. But since almost everyone has it, it’s not a problem.

Let me get into nerd mode: Epstein-Barr (EB) virus is part of the Herpes group and, like the types of Herpes with which we’re familiar, infects for life.  But EB, when contracted by a baby, maybe when the family kisses them, doesn’t cause problems. It causes an asymptomatic infection. The parents are actually doing the baby a favor because…

EB as a Teen

If, by chance, a person does not get EB as a baby, they may catch it as a teenager. Then, since they’re not the right age for this virus, they may develop Infectious Mononucleosis or “kissing disease.” Actually, EB can be caught by any sharing of saliva—not just kissing. Same virus, but the host is older and the disease is worse. By the age of 20 or so, 95% of the population has the EB virus.

EB as an Adult

What if a person in the remaining 5% gets the virus at their now even-older age? The recent research shows that, in some people, the immune response to the virus leads to an autoimmune disorder. In this case, the immune system attacks the patient’s own myelinated (nerve) cells, and they get MS. Not everyone. But it appears that for some people, their immune system thinks the virus looks like myelin, and it then makes a mistake: MS.

EB if You’re Immunocompromised

To make the story even more interesting, in some cases, EB causes cancer. Seriously! If a person is immunocompromised, by for example having malaria or AIDS, the virus can cause Burkitt’s lymphoma, Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and even nasopharyngeal cancer.

So, what can we do about all this? Not much. Almost everyone is infected with EB, and nearly everyone sheds it. So, for me, I’m enjoying knowing that Dr. Porterfield was right! I wish he were alive to tell…