Ablashi, D V, Josephs, S F, Buchbinder, A et al. · Journal of virological methods · 1988 · DOI
This study describes a virus called human herpesvirus-6 (HHV-6) that was newly discovered in 1986. Researchers found that this virus can infect many different types of cells in the body and detected antibodies to it in about 26% of healthy people. Interestingly, they found higher levels of HHV-6 antibodies in people with certain cancers, autoimmune diseases, HIV/AIDS, and chronic fatigue syndrome, suggesting the virus may play a role in these conditions.
This early study provides foundational evidence that HHV-6 may be present at elevated levels in ME/CFS patients, suggesting a potential viral contribution to disease pathogenesis. Understanding whether and how HHV-6 contributes to ME/CFS immune dysfunction could inform diagnostic strategies and guide future treatment approaches targeting viral reactivation.
This study does not prove that HHV-6 causes ME/CFS—elevated antibodies indicate past or chronic infection but do not establish causation. The detection of HHV-6 in disease populations is correlational; the virus may be a consequence of immune dysfunction rather than a cause. The in vitro co-infection findings cannot be directly extrapolated to human disease without clinical validation.
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
The first block is for the primary paper and is the citation you should use in research work. The atlas-snapshot line only applies if you are specifically referring to this atlas’s reading of the paper on the date shown.
Primary citation
Ablashi, D V, Josephs, S F, Buchbinder, A, Hellman, K, Nakamura, S, Llana, T, et al. (1988). Human B-lymphotropic virus (human herpesvirus-6).. Journal of virological methods. https://doi.org/10.1016/0166-0934(88)90050-x
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-ablashi-1988-human-lymphotropic,
author = {Ablashi, D V and Josephs, S F and Buchbinder, A and Hellman, K and Nakamura, S and Llana, T and Lusso, P and Kaplan, M and Dahlberg, J and Memon, S},
title = {Human B-lymphotropic virus (human herpesvirus-6).},
journal = {Journal of virological methods},
year = {1988},
doi = {10.1016/0166-0934(88)90050-x},
note = {PubMed: 2846617},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/ablashi-1988-human-lymphotropic},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-26. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/ablashi-1988-human-lymphotropic
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