Plasma Immunoglobulin-G (IgG) Against Epstein Barr Virus Nuclear Antigens Among University Students in Port Harcourt, Nigeria

Iheanyi Omezuruike Okonko and Joan Egbogon

Background and Objective: Although the high prevalence of EBV has been well documented in Africa, such data are sparse from Port Harcourt, Nigeria. This study was done to evaluate Epstein-Barr Nuclear Antigens (EBNA) among University students in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: Ninety (90) plasma samples were tested to examine the seroprevalence of EBV in University students. Plasma samples were tested for antibodies specific to EBV by IgG ELISA assays. Differences in seropositivity rates were evaluated using the Chi-square test. Results: Of the 90 University students tested, 78 (86.7%) were males and 12 (13.3%) were females, with ages ranging from 17-33 years. Among the University students tested, the overall seroprevalence of EBV was 95.6%. Age, marital status, occupations, drinking habits, stressful events, overseas travel, sexually activeness, oral sex, anal sex, sexual activities, condom use, ABO blood groups, history of allergies, blood transfusion, tissue and organ transplants and surgery were not independent determinants (p>0.05) while sex, educational level, smoking habits, penetrative intercourse and kissing were independent determinants (p<0.05) for EBV infections among University students in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Conclusion: The results presented herein indicate that EBV infections are hyperendemic among university students in Port Harcourt, Nigeria and suggest primarily a horizontal route of transmission of the EBV infections in Nigeria. Students under 25 years should be the primary target population of public health measures in the future. This study demonstrated that the seropositivity of EBV significantly rose with age, sex and educational level.

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