Description
Objective. Oral lichen planus (OLP) is considered a T cell-mediated chronic inflammatory process activated by an unknown antigen, making basal keratinocytes vulnerable to a cytotoxic cell mediated immune response. The aim is to summarize information on the role and pathways of Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) and immune cells in inducing OLP as an autoimmune lesion.Methods. A search was conducted across databases of PubMed, Scopus, Research Gate, Web of Science, Science Direct, and Google Scholar. A total of 127 studies were identified that examined the potential correlation between EBV and oral epithelial cells with OLP.
Results. We can assume that EBV can act both as an exogenous and an endogenous antigen in the pathogenesis of OLP. An important role in detecting and capturing antigens and modulating the adaptive immune response plays antigen-presenting cells (APC), such as dendritic cells (Langerhans cells, LC). Although EBV shows tropism for B cells and epithelial cells, under certain conditions it can infect monocytes, LCs, NK, and T lymphocytes. It means that under some circumstances of the chronic inflammatory process, EBV particles can react as endogenous agents. During the development of the autoimmune process, a decisive role is played by the loss of immune tolerance.
Conclusions. Factors like the activity of cytokines, chemokines, and autoantibodies secreted by EBV-positive plasma cells, autoantigens formed due to virus protein mimicry of human proteins, new self-peptides released from damaged tissues, self-reactive B and T cells, dysregulation of LC function, the anti-apoptotic effect of EBV early lytic antigens, and an imbalance between inflammatory and anti-inflammatory immune cells facilitate the development of an autoimmune process
| Period | 9 Nov 2023 → 10 Nov 2023 |
|---|---|
| Event title | International conference 'Autoimmune diseases: main problems and solutions' |
| Event type | Conference |
| Organiser | Rīga Stradiņš University |
| Location | Riga, LatviaShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | International |