Epstein-Barr Virus Nuclear Antigen 1 Increases the Expression of ViralOncogenes and Cellular Genes in the HeLa Cell Line

Epstein-barr virus (ebv) represents one of the most important viral carcinogens. ebv nuclearantigen-1 (ebna1) can induce the expression of different cellular and viral genes. in this study,we evaluated the ebna1 effects on the expression patterns of human papillomavirus type 18(hpv-18) e6 and e7 oncogenes and three cellular genes, including birc5, c-myc, and stmn1,in a cervical adenocarcinoma cell line. hela cells were divided into three groups: one transfectedwith a plasmid containing the ebna1 gene, one transfected with a control plasmid, and onewithout transfection. in all three groups, the expression levels of e6, e7, birc5, c-myc, andstmn1 genes were checked using real-time pcr. pathological staining was used to examinechanges in cell morphology. real-time pcr results showed that the expression level of hpv-18e6 (p=0.02) and e7 (p=0.02) oncogenes significantly increased in hela cells transfected withthe ebna1 plasmid compared to cells transfected with control plasmid. also, the presence ofebna1 induced the expression of birc5 and c-myc, which increased tenfold (p=0.03) andthreefold (p=0.02), respectively. regarding the stmn1 cellular gene, although the expressionlevel in hela cells transfected with ebna1 plasmid showed a twofold increase, this change wasinsignificant (p=0.11). also, ebna1 expression caused the creation of large hela cells withabundant cytoplasm and numerous nuclei. the ebv-ebna1 could increase the expression levelsof hpv-18 e6 and e7 viral oncogenes as well as c-myc and birc5 cellular genes in the helacell line. these findings indicate that the simultaneous infection of cervical cells with hpv-18and ebv might accelerate the progression of cervical cancer.