Kaposi Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus

Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) is known to be a human carcinogen based on sufficient evidence from studies in humans. This conclusion is based on evidence from epidemiological and molecular studies, which show that KSHV causes Kaposi sarcoma, primary effusion lymphoma, and a plasmablastic variant of multicentric Castleman disease, and on supporting mechanistic data. KSHV causes cancer, primarily but not exclusively in people with suppressed immune systems, by coding for protein and RNA products that work together to transform host cells into cancer cells and promote their survival and growth. These viral products are made (through the use of host-cell machinery) both when KSHV is in the lytic phase (destroying the infected cell during replication) and when it is latent (maintaining its DNA in the infected cell without destroying the cell) (Mesri et al. 2010, Fukumoto et al. 2011). KSHV virus is latent in most infected cells.