{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,30]],"date-time":"2026-06-30T05:47:11Z","timestamp":1782798431154,"version":"3.54.5"},"reference-count":30,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,30]],"date-time":"2026-06-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1782777600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Pediatr."],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Objective<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>This study aims to evaluate serum beta-2 microglobulin (\u03b22M) as a diagnostic biomarker for acute primary Epstein\u2013Barr virus (EBV) infection in children, Additionally, serum vitamin D3 levels were compared between EBV-infected children and children with viral upper respiratory tract infection to explore their potential clinical relevance.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>A total of 129 children with acute primary EBV infection were identified as the EBV group, while 130 children with viral upper respiratory tract infections in the same age group hospitalized during the same period were identified as the control group. The age, gender, and laboratory indicators of the two groups were analyzed and compared. Pearson's correlation was used to analyze the correlation between \u03b22M and serum EBV-DNA concentration. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was drawn, and the threshold and area under the curve (AUC) of \u03b22M for predicting the diagnosis of EBV infection were calculated.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      The white blood cell count, serum lactate dehydrogenase, and alanine aminotransferase levels in the EBV group were significantly than those in the control group (\n                      <jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u2009&amp;lt;\u20090.0001), and Serum \u03b22M level were significantly higher in the EBV group than in the control group (\n                      <jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u2009&amp;lt;\u20090.001), while serum vitamin D3 levels were significantly lower (\n                      <jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u2009&amp;lt;\u20090.001). Pearson's correlation analysis showed a positive correlation between serum \u03b22M levels and serum EBV-DNA load (\n                      <jats:italic>r<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u2009=\u20090.469,\n                      <jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u2009&amp;lt;\u20090.01). ROC curve analysis revealed that the AUC of serum \u03b22M for diagnosing EBV infection was 0.907 (95% confidence interval 0.8723\u20130.9412;\n                      <jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic>\n                      \u2009&amp;lt;\u20090.01), with an optimal threshold of 3.3\u2005mg\/L, a specificity of 62.1%, and a sensitivity of 90.8%.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>The serum \u03b22M levels are significantly increased in the stage of primary EBV infection in children, and \u03b22M appears to be a promising biomarker for predicting primary EBV infection. The serum vitamin D3 levels are significantly reduced in children with primary EBV infection, and the protective effect of vitamin D supplementation in those children warrants additional clinical exploration.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fped.2026.1853250","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,30]],"date-time":"2026-06-30T05:41:37Z","timestamp":1782798097000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Serum beta-2 microglobulin as a diagnostic biomarker for pediatric Epstein\u2013Barr virus infections: a retrospective study"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"14","author":[{"given":"Sheng","family":"Cheng","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pediatrics, Affiliated Hospital 6 of Nantong University, Yancheng Third People\u2019s Hospital","place":["Yancheng, Jiangsu, 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China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Tongjin","family":"Yin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pediatrics, Affiliated Hospital 6 of Nantong University, Yancheng Third People\u2019s Hospital","place":["Yancheng, Jiangsu, China"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,30]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"45","DOI":"10.1007\/s12519-011-0244-1","article-title":"Epidemiologic and clinical characteristics of infectious mononucleosis associated with Epstein\u2013Barr virus infection in children in Beijing, China","volume":"7","author":"Gao","year":"2011","journal-title":"World J Pediatr"},{"key":"B2","first-page":"372","article-title":"Common questions about infectious mononucleosis","volume":"91","author":"Womack","year":"2015","journal-title":"Am Fam Physician"},{"key":"B3","first-page":"905","article-title":"Expert 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