Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 29, 2026

Tractable In Vivo Reprogramming of Tumor Cells to Type 1 Conventional Dendritic Cell-like Cells
Published on: August 1, 2025
Immune Reprogramming by EBV and KSHV in the Tumour Microenvironment: From Mechanisms of Immune Escape to
1Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, China-Japan Union Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, Jilin Province, China.
Abstract:
Oncogenic gamma herpesviruses in humans, such as Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), can persist in the host for a long time by establishing persistent latent infection and by dynamic reshaping of the immune system that eventually can lead to virus-related malignancies. The focus of this narrative review is on the immune reprogramming of these viruses, which goes beyond mere immune evasion. Unlike immune escape, which is largely a passive process based on reduced antigen visibility or masking, immune reprogramming is an active and virus-directed remodelling of host immunity towards tolerance and tumour-supportive functions. Immune system rewiring, or functional rewiring, is essentially a multi-layered modulation of the innate and adaptive immune systems. By targeting similar and virus-specific pathways, these viruses can induce changes in the tumour microenvironment (TME) and alter the conditions in favour of their survival through the establishment and survival of tumour cells. Comparing the convergences and differences of the virus-specific consequences can help to understand how these viruses perform immune rewiring and highlight the challenges of therapeutic pathways and therapeutic resistance.
Related Concept Videos
Tumor Immunotherapy
Cytotoxic T Cells-mediated Immune Response
Immunological surveillance is the ability of immune cells to monitor and eliminate infected cells with intracellular pathogens, neoplastically transformed cells, and cells with non-self antigens. Cytotoxic T cells and NK...
Mechanisms of Retrovirus-induced Cancers
Mechanisms of Retrovirus-induced Cancers
The Tumor Microenvironment
The Tumor Microenvironment
