A study funded partly by the Lupus Research Alliance reveals insights into how a common viral infection may cause lupus

NEW YORK, Nov. 12, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The Lupus Research Alliance partly funded a study that reveals how Epstein-Barr Virus may directly contribute to the development of lupus, a chronic autoimmune disease.

The Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) infects more than 94% of people on Earth. While EBV has long been associated with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), the mechanism(s) by which it may promote disease has remained unclear — until now. The study, published in Science Translational Medicine and led by William Robinson, MD, PhD, professor of medicine at the Stanford School of Medicine, shows that EBV can infect and reprogram B cells, key players in the immune system, transforming them into "driver" cells that promote autoimmunity in lupus.

"This research marks an important breakthrough, offering a mechanistic model of how EBV infection may trigger autoimmunity in lupus," Hoang Nguyen, PhD, Assistant Vice President of Research at the Lupus Research Alliance, said. "Dr. Robinson's work not only deepens our understanding of EBV's role in driving autoimmunity, it also opens the door to new strategies for treatment and prevention." 

This work was funded through several Lupus Research Alliance awards – including an Empowering Lupus Research Postdoctoral Award to team member Shady Younis, PhD, and a Common Mechanisms of Autoimmunity (formerly Common Mechanisms of Autoimmune Disease) award to Dr. Robinson. The Common Mechanisms of Autoimmune Disease Award, awarded in collaboration between the Lupus Research Alliance, Breakthrough T1D, and the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, to expand our understanding of autoimmune disease and accelerating potential treatments.

"For decades, EBV has been linked to lupus and other autoimmune diseases, but the precise mechanisms were missing. In this study, we developed a method to directly detect the virus in patients' B cells and uncovered how it reprograms them to drive autoimmune responses," said Dr. Younis, an instructor of immunology and rheumatology at the Stanford School of Medicine and first author of the study. 

Dr. Robinson expressed his appreciation for the Lupus Research Alliance's funding, which helped make this study possible.

"This study represents a significant advance in understanding how a common virus may contribute to the development of lupus as well as provide broader implications for other EBV-associated autoimmune diseases, such as multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis, and fosters our collective knowledge around autoimmune disease pathways and potential therapies," said Dr. Robinson.

About Lupus  
Lupus is a chronic, complex autoimmune disease that affects millions of people worldwide. In lupus, the immune system, meant to defend against infections, produces autoantibodies that mistake the body's own cells as foreign, causing other immune cells to attack organs such as the kidneys, brain, heart, lungs and skin, as well as blood and joints. Ninety percent of people with lupus are women, most often diagnosed between the ages of 15-45. Black, Latinx, Indigenous, Asian and Pacific Islander people are disproportionately affected by lupus. 

About the Lupus Research Alliance 
The Lupus Research Alliance is the largest non-governmental, non-profit funder of lupus research worldwide. The organization aims to transform treatment by funding the most innovative lupus research, fostering scientific talent, and driving discovery toward better diagnostics, improved treatments and, ultimately a cure for lupus. Because the Lupus Research Alliance's Board of Directors funds all administrative and fundraising costs, 100% of all donations goes to support lupus research programs. 

For more information or to donate to lupus research, visit the LRA at LupusResearch.org and on social media at: X, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram. 

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SOURCE Lupus Research Alliance