Gelman, I H, Unger, E R, Mawle, A C et al. · Molecular diagnosis : a journal devoted to the understanding of human disease through the clinical application of molecular biology · 2000 · DOI
Researchers investigated whether a virus called endogenous retroviral p15E might be involved in causing ME/CFS. They tested blood samples from people with ME/CFS and compared them to healthy controls. The study found no evidence that this viral protein was present in higher amounts in ME/CFS patients, suggesting it is not responsible for the disease.
This study helps narrow the search for ME/CFS causes by systematically eliminating candidate biological markers. Understanding what is NOT causing the disease is as important as identifying what is, helping researchers focus resources on more promising investigative pathways.
This negative finding does not prove that no retroviruses are involved in ME/CFS—only that p15E specifically is not associated with the disease. It also does not rule out other viral or environmental factors, nor does it explain the underlying mechanisms of ME/CFS in patients who tested negative for this marker.
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
Gelman, I H, Unger, E R, Mawle, A C, Nisenbaum, R, & Reeves, W C (2000). Chronic fatigue syndrome is not associated with expression of endogenous retroviral p15E.. Molecular diagnosis : a journal devoted to the understanding of human disease through the clinical application of molecular biology. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03262034
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-gelman-2000-chronic-fatigue,
author = {Gelman, I H and Unger, E R and Mawle, A C and Nisenbaum, R and Reeves, W C},
title = {Chronic fatigue syndrome is not associated with expression of endogenous retroviral p15E.},
journal = {Molecular diagnosis : a journal devoted to the understanding of human disease through the clinical application of molecular biology},
year = {2000},
doi = {10.1007/BF03262034},
note = {PubMed: 11066017},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/gelman-2000-chronic-fatigue},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-26. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/gelman-2000-chronic-fatigue
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