Table 1.

Functions of EBV proteins in latent infection.

Protein	Functions	Refs.
EBNA1	Required for efficient viral genome replication and persistence in proliferating infected cells	[29,30]
EBNA-LP	Reduces EBNA2 binding site occupancy by eliminating repressors; coactivator of EBNA2 transcription	[28,31]
EBNA2	Transcriptional activator; deposits H3K4me1 epigenetic marks on histones and depletes nucleosomes	[32,33]
EBNA3A	Engages in polycomb group-mediated epigenetic silencing of CXCL9/10 on host genome	[34]
EBNA3B	Inhibitory role in growth through upregulation of CXCL10 chemokines; putative tumor suppressor	[28]
EBNA3C	Coactivates LMP1 promoter with EBNA2; regulates chromatin remodeling via histone deacetyltransferase recruitment; inhibits apoptosis by modulating IRFs	[28,35,36]
LMP1	Mimics CD40 signaling; activates NF-kB and p38 pathways; essential for EBV-mediated cell transformation	[28,37]
LMP2A	Mimics BCR signaling; promotes growth and cell cycle induction; upregulates IL10 and other anti-apoptotic chemokines and factors in B-cells	[28,38,39]
LMP2B	Negatively regulates the function of LMP2A; lowers BCR crosslinking threshold needed for lytic reactivation	[28]

Abbreviations: EBNA: Epstein–Barr nuclear antigen; EBNA-LP: EBNA leader protein; CXCL: C-X-C motif ligand; LMP: latent membrane protein; CD40: cluster of differentiation 40; IRF: interferon regulatory factor; NF-kB: nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B-cells; IL10: interleukin 10.