Hello, my dear friends near and far!

Well, it’s time for the second part of my educational series concerning the possible causes of Myalgic encephalomyelitis /chronic fatigue syndrome, which includes symptoms such as debilitating fatigue, intolerance to physical stress, and and cognitive impairment. Symptoms get worse after just mild exertion. The exact cause is still unclear, which makes finding cures and/or treatments difficult. What is known is it develops after an infection, which is known as post infectious ME/CFS or PI-CFS.

A team of researchers led by NIHS'(National Institutes of Health) Dr. Avindra Nath ran an in depth study of 17 people with PI ME/CFS and 21 healthy controls. The objective was to uncover features which might be behind PI ME/CFS.

The participants with PI ME/CFS had higher heart rates during the day and a smaller drop in their nighttime heart rate than their healthy counterparts. This suggests the autonomic nervous system, which controls unconscious bodily functions is disrupted. In addition, heart and lung function were also less able to respond to exercise.

In another study, participants were given the choice of performing either an easy task for a low reward or a hard task for a higher reward. Those with PI ME/CFS were less likely to choose the hard task than the healthy volunteers, indicating there was less ability to exert very much physical stress. Brain scans during one task showed PI-ME/CFS patients had lower activity in a region of the brain called the tempo-parietal junction which plays a large role in cognitive and motor functions, suggesting the fatigue might be caused by a dysfunction in how the brain decides how to exert effort.

Cerebrospinal fluid was also analyzed. It was discovered PI MI/CFS patients had reduced levels of chemicals called catechols which aid in regulating the nervous system. The levels of catechol correlated with effort preference and motor function in people with PI ME/CFS, but not in their healthy counterparts. This suggests a change in catechol signaling in the brains of PI-ME/CFS being a cause of their changed effort.

Immune function was examined as well. They found differences in B cells, which make antibodies to help fight pathogens. People with PI ME/CFS had more naive B cells, which can be activated by any foreign substance. Naive B cells or “virgin” B cells are immune cells which have never fought an infection. There were, however, fewer switched memory B cells which, unlike naive or virgin cells, have responded to a specific pathogen before and is able to remember it. Interestingly enough, B cell dysfunction was more prominent in women than in men. These findings suggests the immune system continues to be activated even in the absence of infection.

Taken together,the results suggest that PI ME/CFS may be caused by immune system dysfunction which is triggered by infections. This may lead to chemical changes in the central nervous system which affect certain brain functions to cause symptoms in ME/CFS.

Men and women were quite diverse in their data, noted Dr. Nath, which is indicative ME/CFS is not a one size fits all disease. Considering male and female differences in ME/CFS, the results may lead to new venues of research which could provide insight into other infection associated chronic diseases, he also said. These findings also suggest ways in which PI ME/CFS might be treated, either by further studying the immune system and/or specific circuits in the brain.

Wow! Perhaps in the next five years or so there will at least be a treatment if not a cure! Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have our lives back and at least be semi self-sufficient? I look forward to it!

Well, I will be back next week with part three. I am so sorry about the delay this week, but the weather has been terribly unstable, and, once again, I was down for several days.

As always, I love you all, and I will, “talk” to you soon!
Beckie.

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