Epstein-Barr virus-inducing activity of Euphorbiaceae plants commonly grown in Cameroon.

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) activating potency of 12 species of plants belonging to the Euphorbiaceae family, that are commonly grown in Cameroon, one of the endemic areas of Burkitt's lymphoma (BL), was investigated. The EBV-inducing activity was found in most of the plants tested and in the soil around the plants whose root extracts were active. These findings support the notion that such EBV-activating principles are one of the environmental co-factors causing BL.