Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) Research
Ready to get technical? The research section contains overviews of chronic fatigue
syndrome (ME/CFS) research
topics. Created by and for laypeople they can - as befits the subject -
be challenging.
XMRV - the Game Changer?
- the Whittemore Peterson Institute's the Whittemore Peterson Institute's discovery
of a rare retrovirus in a large percentage of chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS)
patients could be an epochal event in the history of this disease.
Hydrogen Sulfide: A Breakthrough in ME/CFS?
The Brain in
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS)
- check out
a
series
of papers on one of the most exciting place in ME/CFS research - the brain.
The Heart of the Matter?
- Could a heart dysfunction be behind the fatigue and other problems in
ME/CFS? Check out a
series of papers taking a
critical look at the evidence.
A Channelopathy in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS)?
- Since damaged
ion channels could occur in any cell, a channelopathy could cause vastly
different symptoms depending on which tissues it occurred in. Recent CFS
gene expression studies have highlighted several ion channel genes.
- Defining CFS correctly is critical to its
success as a research subject. The CDC recently created a new (Empirical)
definition of CFS that raised a great deal of controversy. In these papers we
examine what is different about the new definition and how it might
affect chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) research.
The Dubbo Studies - A Model of Post-Infective Fatigue Emerging?
- The
Dubbo Studies are a fascinating set of studies examining people infected one of three
pathogens (Ross-River Virus, Epstein-Barr Virus, Coxiella Burnetii) as they
lapse into chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS).
The Pain of Fibromyalgia.
- We take advantage of several recent studies to look at the different theories
regarding how the pain in FMS is caused....and come to a surprising conclusion.
Glutathione
Depletion/Methylation Blockades in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
-
Glutathione is the master
anti-oxidant in the body. These papers by
independent researcher Rich Von Konynenburg examine the evidence for glutathione depletion in CFS and ways of
enhancing it.
The Pathogens in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS)
- No subject is more fraught with controversy than that concerning the pathogens.
The flu-like symptoms often found at the onset and during the illness, as well
as the immune abnormalities seen have long suggested a pathogenic
origin to this disease. ease.
- The
Herpesviruses in ME/CFS: The Herpesvirus Six (HHV-6) - No pathogens have received more attention in CFS than the peculiar family of
viruses called the Herpesviruses, and no pathogen has received more attention
than Human Herpesvirus Six (HHV-6)
- Epstein-Bar Virus - more CFS patients appear
to become ill after a bout with EBV than any other pathogen. Check out a four
part series on the biggest trigger in ME/CFS.
- XMRV - is CFS actually caused by a
retrovirus? Check out a large selection on the most intriguing virus yet
to be associated with ME/CFS.
The Pharmacogenomics Papers
- these efforts to integrate gene expression
with laboratory and clinical data resulted in the simultaneous
publication of 14 research papers in the Journal Pharmacogenomics in April,
2006. This complex effort could re-orient our thinking on CFS.
- Introduction - Who, what, and where.
- Allostatic Stress - evidence
suggesting ME/CFS patients homeostatic systems have collapsed under the
load .
- Gene Expression - The most
extensive and sophisticated gene expression studies ever done in ME/CFS come to
some surprising conclusions.
- Gene Polymorphisms - More and more
evidence suggests ME/CFS patients have a genetic predisposition to this disease
- Subsets - Nothing is more vital than
identifying subsets; they tried - did they succeed? Check it out.
- The CAMDA Project - the CDC throws their
entire database into the hands of data mining specialists.
The Perils of Standing;
Orthostatic Intolerance, the Autonomic Nervous System and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS)
- Orthostatic intolerance (OI) - the inability to stand without symptoms -
commonly occurs in chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). It is astonishing how many symptoms orthostatic
intolerance has in common with CFS; no other diseases or conditions have as
similar a presentation.
Reports from the
International Conferences
This section contains
reports
from many of the international conferences on chronic fatigue syndrome
(ME/CFS held in the past
eight years.
RNase L is activated when cells are under attack by
pathogens. In most CFS patients thus far studied the RNase L enzyme is
fragmented and the RNase L system deregulated. An RNase L fragment
commonly seen in CFS patients is the closest thing to a biomarker yet found for
this disease.
-
Why, after all this research is the scientific community still unclear about the
cause of CFS?
Why is there still no biomarker for CFS? Why is there still so much controversy
over this disease? This
2005 survey of PubMed citations dating back to 1988
reveals how the quantity and focus of CFS has changed over the past 17 years,
and it leaves us with some disturbing conclusions about the pace of CFS research
and its future prospects.