Leogrande G, Jirillo E
Istituto di Microbiologia Medica, Facoltà di Medicina dell'Università di Bari, Italy.
Eur J Epidemiol. 1993 Jul;9(4):368-72. doi: 10.1007/BF00157392.
Serological patterns against Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) specific antigens were determined in 3732 healthy babies and children aged 0-10 years living in the Bari area (South Italy). IgG antibodies against EBV capsid antigen (VCA) were found in 2713 subjects (72.7%). Seropositivity rates, high in the first semester of life (83.8%), declined between 6 and 12 months (65.6%) and even further between 1 and 2 years (43.8%). After 2 years the frequency of positive children rose progressively reaching steady levels between 5 and 7 years (80.2%) and between 8 and 10 years (81.9%). IgA antibodies against VCA, IgG anti-early viral antigen (EA) and IgG against virus-associated nuclear antigens (EBNA) were found in 17.9%, 15.9% and 25.7% of the subjects tested, respectively. IgM anti-VCA were found only in 35 (0.9%) children, but 818 (21.9%) exhibited antibody patterns suggestive of a recent infection: IgG anti-VCA > or = 1:160 alone or in association with IgA anti-VCA or IgG anti-EA or both. These results suggest that in this area the primary infection by EBV occur early in life, with immunity to EBV acquired primarily after 4 years.
在居住于巴里地区（意大利南部）的3732名0至10岁健康婴儿及儿童中，检测了针对爱泼斯坦-巴尔病毒（EBV）特异性抗原的血清学模式。在2713名受试者（72.7%）中发现了针对EBV衣壳抗原（VCA）的IgG抗体。血清阳性率在生命的第一学期较高（83.8%），在6至12个月之间下降（65.6%），在1至2岁之间进一步下降（43.8%）。2岁以后，阳性儿童的频率逐渐上升，在5至7岁（80.2%）和8至10岁（81.9%）之间达到稳定水平。在分别检测的受试者中，针对VCA的IgA抗体、抗早期病毒抗原（EA）的IgG抗体和针对病毒相关核抗原（EBNA）的IgG抗体的检出率分别为17.9%、15.9%和25.7%。仅在35名（0.9%）儿童中发现了抗VCA IgM，但818名（21.9%）儿童呈现出提示近期感染的抗体模式：单独的IgG抗VCA≥1:160或与IgA抗VCA或IgG抗EA或两者同时存在。这些结果表明，在该地区，EBV的初次感染发生在生命早期，对EBV的免疫力主要在4岁以后获得。
