MAGICAL MEDICINE: HOW TO MAKE AN ILLNESS ... - Invest in ME

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analysed the gene expression in peripheral blood of patients with CFS/ME and in all of these, genes of immunity
and defence are prominent….Progress is being made towards an understanding of the pathogenesis of this
intriguing and devastating disease” (Jonathan Kerr. Current Rheumatology Reports 2008:10:482‐491).
2008
“…expression of several complement genes remained at higher level in CFS subjects before and post‐exercise,
indicating a lack of acute phase transcriptional response by these genes which may lead to localised and
uncontrollable inflammation mediated tissue damage” (Sorensen B et al. Mol Med 2008: Nov 16: Epub
ahead of print).
2009
“We used global transcriptome analysis to identify genes that were differentially expressed in the vastus lateralis
muscle of female and male CFS patients. We found that the expression of genes that play key roles in
mitochondrial function and oxidative imbalance…were altered, as were genes involved in energy
production, muscular trophism and fibre phenotype determination. Importantly, the expression of a gene
encoding a component of the nicotinic cholinergic receptor binding site was reduced, suggesting impaired
neuromuscular transmission. We argue that these major biological processes could be involved in and/or
responsible for the muscle symptoms of CFS” (Pietrangelo T, Fulle S et al. Int J Immunpathol Pharmacol
2009:22(3)795‐807).
2009
Referring to earlier work that demonstrated 88 abnormal genes, the authors state: “We set out to determine
whether these findings were reproducible in fresh subjects (and) whether the previously‐reported dysregulation of these
genes also occurred in drug‐free patients with endogenous depression…Results show that these findings are
reproducible, and that gene expression in endogenous depression patients was markedly different to that in
CFS/ME patients and was similar to that in normal controls in terms of these 88 human genes…In the
present study, we have confirmed this differential expression in 62 additional and previously untested CFS/ME
patients…We have addressed the question of the specificity of these 88 genes to CFS/ME by testing drug‐free
patients with endogenous depression. The fact that only 5 of these genes were abnormally expressed in
endogenous depression patients as compared with normals supports the view that CFS/ME and endogenous
depression are biologically distinct, and that the psychological features of CFS/ME are in fact secondary to
the pathogenesis” (Lihan Zang, Jonathn Kerr et al. J Clin Pathol 2009: doi 10.1136/jcp2009.072561).
Documented ocular abnormalities in ME/CFS
1988
David J Browning found that the most common ocular symptoms in ME/CFS (CFIDS) are floaters, transient
blurring of vision, transient double vision, extreme light sensitivity, burning and pain in the eyes (CFIDS
Chronicle October 1988:6‐7).
1992
Nystagmus at a rate 230 times normal, poor fixation stability, and ratchet vision were reported (Meeting‐
Place 1992: 38:38‐40).