Associations between past infectious mononucleosis diagnosis and 47 inflammatory and vascular stress biomarkers
Infectious mononucleosis (IM), predominantly caused by primary Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection, is a common disease in adolescents and young adults. EBV infection is nearly ubiquitous globally. Although primary EBV infection is asymptomatic in most individuals, IM manifests in a subset infected during adolescence or young adulthood. IM occurrence is linked to sibship structure, and is associated with increased risk of multiple sclerosis, other autoimmune diseases, and cancer later in life. We analyzed 47 biomarkers in 5,526 Danish individuals aged 18-60 years, of whom 604 had a history of IM, examining their associations with IM history up to 48 years after IM diagnosis. No significant long-term associations were observed after adjusting for multiple comparisons. When restricting the analysis to individuals measured within 10 years post-IM diagnosis, a statistically significant increase in CRP levels was observed in females. This association was not driven by oral contraceptive use. No significant associations between sibship structure and biomarker levels were detected. In conclusion, our study shows that while IM may lead to a transient increase in CRP levels in females, it does not result in long-term alterations in plasma biomarkers related to immune function, suggesting other mechanisms may be responsible for the long-term health impacts associated with IM.
Authors
- Mie Topholm Bruun (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8819-5388)
- Bitten Aagaard Jensen
- Thomas Folkmann Hansen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6703-7762)
- Susan Mikkelsen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7806-1143)
- Erik Sørensen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5002-9077)
- Julia Dietz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6990-3257)
- Emelie Curovic Rotbain (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4199-772X)
- Signe Holst Søegaard (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4857-7186)
- Joseph Dowsett (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5381-2633)
- Michael Schwinn (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6151-369X)
- Ólafur Birgir Davíðsson
- Jakob Thaning Bay (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1159-4003)
- Mette Nyegaard (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4973-8543)
- Ole Birger Pedersen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2312-5976)
- Ragnar P. Kristjansson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3678-5693)
- Sisse Rye Ostrowski (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5288-3851)
- Bertram Kjerulff (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9953-9521)
- Kristoffer Sølvsten Burgdorf (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5814-6844)
- Henrik Hjalgrim
- Klaus Rostgaard (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6220-9414)
- Christian Erikstrup
- Henrik Ullum
- Søren Brunak
Institutions
- Statens Serum Institut (DK)
- University of Copenhagen (DK)
- Aarhus University (DK)
- Aalborg University Hospital (DK)
- Novo Nordisk Foundation (DK)
- Odense University Hospital (DK)
- Glostrup Hospital (DK)
- Aarhus University Hospital (DK)
- Copenhagen University Hospital (DK)
- Rigshospitalet (DK)
- Danish Cancer Society (DK)
- Zealand University Hospital Køge (DK)
- Aalborg University (DK)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Scientific Reports
- Published
- 2025-04-02
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-95276-4
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Viral-associated cancers and disorders
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.05