Baraniuk, James N · Current allergy and asthma reports · 2010 · DOI
This study examined whether a virus called XMRV might be connected to ME/CFS. Researchers found this virus in about half to two-thirds of ME/CFS patients tested, compared to only about 4% of healthy people. The virus was able to spread from patient blood to laboratory cells, raising questions about whether it could be transmitted between people.
If XMRV were confirmed as a causative agent in ME/CFS, it could fundamentally change understanding of the disease's origin and lead to antiviral treatments. The potential for viral transmission would also have significant implications for patient safety, blood supply screening, and infection control. This work challenged prevailing views that ME/CFS was purely psychological, opening biological investigation pathways.
This study does not prove XMRV causes ME/CFS—finding a virus in patients does not establish causation, only association. The study also does not definitively demonstrate that XMRV spreads between people in real-world conditions or that it is responsible for CFS symptoms. Independent replication of findings was acknowledged as essential and not yet completed at the time of publication.
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
Baraniuk, James N (2010). Xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus in chronic fatigue syndrome and prostate cancer.. Current allergy and asthma reports. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11882-010-0106-2
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-baraniuk-2010-xenotropic-murine,
author = {Baraniuk, James N},
title = {Xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus in chronic fatigue syndrome and prostate cancer.},
journal = {Current allergy and asthma reports},
year = {2010},
doi = {10.1007/s11882-010-0106-2},
note = {PubMed: 20425007},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/baraniuk-2010-xenotropic-murine},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/baraniuk-2010-xenotropic-murine
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