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Abstract
Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) was discovered 40 years ago from examining electron micrographs
of cells cultured from Burkitt's lymphoma, a childhood tumour that is common in sub-Saharan
Africa, where its unusual geographical distribution - which matches that of holoendemic
malaria -indicated a viral aetiology. However, far from showing a restricted distribution,
EBV - a gamma-herpesvirus - was found to be widespread in all human populations and
to persist in the vast majority of individuals as a lifelong, asymptomatic infection
of the B-lymphocyte pool. Despite such ubiquity, the link between EBV and 'endemic'
Burkitt's lymphoma proved consistent and became the first of an unexpectedly wide
range of associations discovered between this virus and tumours.