Raman spectroscopy of lymphocytes from patients with the Epstein-Barr virus infection

Abstract

Abstract In this study, Raman spectroscopy was applied to trace lymphocytes activation following contact with the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) of the herpesvirus family. The biomarker of cell activation was found to be the 520 cm− 1 band, indicating formation of immunoglobulins. The blood samples were obtained from patients diagnosed with infectious mononucleosis and treated at the University Hospital in Kraków. The lymphocytes’ Raman spectra were collected using a mapping technique, exciting samples with a 514.5 nm line of Ar + laser. Measurements were performed on the 1st, 4th, 6th, 12th and 30th day of hospitalization, until the patient recovered. The highest intensity of the immunoglobulin marker was observed on the 4th day of hospitalization, while the results of the blood count of patients showed the greatest increase in the number of lymphocytes at the beginning of hospitalization. The blood of the healthy volunteers lacked activated lymphocytes. Some information was provided by the evaluation of B-cell activation by estimating the activated areas in the cells, which were determined by the presence of the Ig marker. The 900 cm− 1 band and band around 1450 cm− 1 were also analyzed as markers of the presence of the latent membrane protein, LMP2A (and 2B), of the EBV viral protein. The anomalous degree of depolarization observed in B-cells in the course of EBV infection appears to be due to the influence of a virus protein, disrupting BCR signal transduction.