ArticleOncotarget2017
Leflunomide/teriflunomide inhibit Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)- induced lymphoproliferative disease and lytic viral replication.
Article in Oncotarget, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 37 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
37 citing papers in PubMed, 77 citations in OpenAlex.
- Safety and efficacy of teriflunomide on clinical course, and laboratory findings in patients with HTLV-1-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis: a triple-blind study.Journal of neurology · 2025Trial
- A phase 2a open-label clinical trial to determine the effect of famciclovir on EBV activity as measured by EBV shedding in the saliva of patients with multiple sclerosis.Multiple sclerosis (Houndmills, Basingstoke, England) · 2024Trial
- Transgenic mouse-derived human monoclonal antibodies targeting EBV gp350 and gp42 provide basis for therapeutic development.Cell reports. Medicine · 2026Article
- The case for targeting latent and lytic Epstein-Barr virus infection in multiple sclerosis.Brain : a journal of neurology · 2025Review
- Anti-EBV: Artificial intelligence driven predictive modeling for repurposing drugs as potential antivirals against Epstein-Barr virus.Computational and structural biotechnology journal · 2025Article
- The Role of Microorganisms in the Etiopathogenesis of Demyelinating Diseases.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- From bedside to bench: how existing therapies inform the relationship between Epstein-Barr virus and multiple sclerosis.Clinical & translational immunology · 2023Review
- Teriflunomide and Epstein-Barr virus in a Spanish multiple sclerosis cohort:Frontiers in immunology · 2023Article
- The Dietary Flavonol Kaempferol Inhibits Epstein-Barr Virus Reactivation in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Cells.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Inhibitors of Nucleotide Biosynthesis as Candidates for a Wide Spectrum of Antiviral Chemotherapy.Microorganisms · 2022Review
- Review
- Review
- Epstein-Barr virus oncoprotein-driven B cell metabolism remodeling.PLoS pathogens · 2022Review
- Impacts of Low-Dose Total Glycosides of Tripterygium wilfordii plus Methotrexate on Immunological Function and Inflammation Level in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis.Computational and mathematical methods in medicine · 2022Article
- Drugs Used in the Treatment of Multiple Sclerosis During COVID-19 Pandemic: A Critical Viewpoint.Current neuropharmacology · 2022Article
- Simiao Qingwen Baidu decoction inhibits Epstein-Barr virus-induced B lymphoproliferative disease and lytic viral replication.Pharmaceutical biology · 2021Article
- Review
- Epstein-Barr Virus Induced Cytidine Metabolism Roles in Transformed B-Cell Growth and Survival.mBio · 2021Article
- Update on the management of multiple sclerosis during the COVID-19 pandemic and post pandemic: An international consensus statement.Journal of neuroimmunology · 2021Review
- Maternal Epstein-Barr Virus-Specific Antibodies and Risk of Infection in Ugandan Infants.The Journal of infectious diseases · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
11 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
EBV infection causes mononucleosis and is associated with specific subsets of B cell lymphomas. Immunosuppressed patients such as organ transplant recipients are particularly susceptible to EBV-induced lymphoproliferative disease (LPD), which can be fatal. Leflunomide (a drug used to treat rheumatoid arthritis) and its active metabolite teriflunomide (used to treat multiple sclerosis) inhibit de novo pyrimidine synthesis by targeting the cellular dihydroorotate dehydrogenase, thereby decreasing T cell proliferation. Leflunomide also inhibits the replication of cytomegalovirus and BK virus via both "on target" and "off target" mechanisms and is increasingly used to treat these viruses in organ transplant recipients. However, whether leflunomide/teriflunomide block EBV replication or inhibit EBV-mediated B cell transformation is currently unknown. We show that teriflunomide inhibits cellular proliferation, and promotes apoptosis, in EBV-transformed B cells in vitro at a clinically relevant dose. In addition, teriflunomide prevents the development of EBV-induced lymphomas in both a humanized mouse model and a xenograft model. Furthermore, teriflunomide inhibits lytic EBV infection in vitro both by preventing the initial steps of lytic viral reactivation, and by blocking lytic viral DNA replication. Leflunomide/teriflunomide might therefore be clinically useful for preventing EBV-induced LPD in patients who have high EBV loads yet require continued immunosuppression.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.