Presence of Epstein-Barr virus in patients with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome

Description

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a complex multifactorial disease that causes increasing morbidity worldwide, and many individuals with ME/CFS symptoms remain undiagnosed due to the lack of diagnostic biomarkers. Its etiology is still unknown, but since some studies have demonstrated that specific proteins encoded by Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) could contribute to the immune and neurological abnormalities exhibited by a subgroup of patients with ME/CFS, the aim of this study was to analyze the presence of EBV in patients and healthy controls. In total 86 patients with clinically diagnosed ME/CFS corresponding to 1994 Fukuda criteria and 44 matched healthy controls were analyzed for the presence of EBV using digital PCR method (26000 partition plate) according to QIAcuity EG PCR protocol from Qiagen. Results showed that 10 out of 86 (12%) patients and 5 out of 44 (11%) controls were EBV positive. Although no significant difference in frequency of EBV between the groups was found, more positive partitions were detected in ME/CFS patients' group (up to 109 positive partitions; median concentration 38.70 copies/μl) in comparison to control group (up to 51 positive partitions; median concentration 12.36 copies/μl). This study's findings suggest that further research should be done to explore the potential role of EBV in ME/CFS, paving the way for investigations into the virus's contribution to the pathophysiology of the disease and potential therapeutic implications.
This research was funded in part by the EU H2020 project VirA, No.952376 and by the Latvian Science Council’s Fundamental and Applied Research project Nr. LZP-2019/1-0380.

Period	15 Feb 2024
Event title	Viruses 2024 - A World of Viruses
Event type	Conference
Location	Barcelona, SpainShow on map
Degree of Recognition	International