This virus infects almost everyone—and it may lead to lupus

For decades, scientists have suspected that a common virus most people acquire in childhood may later trigger lupus, a chronic autoimmune disease capable of damaging nearly every organ system in the body. But the precise link has remained unclear.

Now, new research from Stanford University offers one of the clearest explanations yet. The findings show how the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) can hijack the body’s immune system in ways that may cause lupus in susceptible individuals.

“Globally, approximately 95 percent of adults have been infected with EBV, which means nearly all of us are carriers of this virus,” says William Robinson, a professor of immunology and rheumatology at Stanford and the senior author of the study.

EBV is known to take up long-term residence in the body’s B cells—