Di Luca, D, Zorzenon, M, Mirandola, P et al. · Journal of clinical microbiology · 1995 · DOI
Researchers looked for two common viruses (HHV-6 and HHV-7) in immune cells of ME/CFS patients and compared them to healthy people. They found that HHV-7 was equally common in both groups, but a specific type of HHV-6 called variant A was found more often in ME/CFS patients. This suggests that HHV-6 variant A may be connected to ME/CFS, though the study does not prove it causes the illness.
This early work provided evidence that HHV-6, specifically variant A, appears more frequently in ME/CFS patients than in healthy individuals, suggesting a potential viral connection to the disease. Understanding which viruses are associated with ME/CFS helps researchers investigate whether reactivation of latent viruses might contribute to symptom development or perpetuation.
This study does not prove that HHV-6 causes ME/CFS—finding a virus more often in patients does not establish causation. The presence of HHV-6 DNA in lymphocytes may reflect viral persistence rather than active infection or ongoing viral replication. Additional research is needed to determine whether HHV-6 actively contributes to disease pathology or is simply a marker of immune dysfunction.
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
Di Luca, D, Zorzenon, M, Mirandola, P, Colle, R, Botta, G A, & Cassai, E (1995). Human herpesvirus 6 and human herpesvirus 7 in chronic fatigue syndrome.. Journal of clinical microbiology. https://doi.org/10.1128/jcm.33.6.1660-1661.1995
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-di-luca-1995-human-herpesvirus,
author = {Di Luca, D and Zorzenon, M and Mirandola, P and Colle, R and Botta, G A and Cassai, E},
title = {Human herpesvirus 6 and human herpesvirus 7 in chronic fatigue syndrome.},
journal = {Journal of clinical microbiology},
year = {1995},
doi = {10.1128/jcm.33.6.1660-1661.1995},
note = {PubMed: 7650209},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/di-luca-1995-human-herpesvirus},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-26. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/di-luca-1995-human-herpesvirus
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