A passenger virus is a virus that is frequently found in samples from diseased tissue, such as tumours, but does not contribute to causing the disease.
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Experimental demonstration of passenger status
Proving that a virus has no causative role can be difficult. Although none of the following signs is definitive, evidence that a virus found in diseased tissue is a passenger rather than a causative agent includes:
Examples
A well-established example is lactate dehydrogenase virus, which is often found in mouse tumours. GB virus C and Chandipura virus are possible examples in humans. It has also been suggested that a virus related to Alcelaphine herpesvirus 1 is a passenger virus that, unlike AHV1 itself, doesn't cause bovine malignant catarrhal fever. The discredited Duesberg hypothesis posits that HIV is a passenger virus in the etiology of AIDS.