Giménez-Orenga, Karen, Pierquin, Justine, Brunel, Joanna et al. · Frontiers in immunology · 2022 · DOI
This study found that a dormant virus-like element called HERV-W, which exists naturally in our DNA, may reactivate and remain active long after COVID-19 infection has cleared in people with long COVID. The researchers also discovered that people with higher levels of certain immune proteins (antibodies) against SARS-CoV-2, especially IgE antibodies, tended to have worse physical function. These findings suggest that HERV-W activation and lingering antibody responses might help explain why some people develop long-lasting COVID symptoms.
Since ME/CFS and post-COVID-19 condition share clinical similarities and both may involve persistent viral activation mechanisms, understanding how dormant viral elements reactivate could reveal shared pathological pathways. Identifying biomarkers like HERV-W expression and IgE antibodies could enable better subtyping of patients and development of targeted treatments, potentially benefiting both post-COVID and ME/CFS populations. This work bridges virology and immunology to explain mechanisms underlying post-viral illnesses.
This study does not prove that HERV-W activation causes post-COVID symptoms—only that the two are associated; the direction of causality remains unclear. The cross-sectional design cannot establish whether HERV-W reactivation persists indefinitely or eventually resolves. The findings are specific to post-COVID-19 and cannot be directly applied to ME/CFS without independent replication in that population.
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
Giménez-Orenga, Karen, Pierquin, Justine, Brunel, Joanna, Charvet, Benjamin, Martín-Martínez, Eva, Perron, Hervé, et al. (2022). HERV-W ENV antigenemia and correlation of increased anti-SARS-CoV-2 immunoglobulin levels with post-COVID-19 symptoms.. Frontiers in immunology. https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2022.1020064
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-gimnez-orenga-2022-herv-env,
author = {Giménez-Orenga, Karen and Pierquin, Justine and Brunel, Joanna and Charvet, Benjamin and Martín-Martínez, Eva and Perron, Hervé and Oltra, Elisa},
title = {HERV-W ENV antigenemia and correlation of increased anti-SARS-CoV-2 immunoglobulin levels with post-COVID-19 symptoms.},
journal = {Frontiers in immunology},
year = {2022},
doi = {10.3389/fimmu.2022.1020064},
note = {PubMed: 36389746},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/gimnez-orenga-2022-herv-env},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-27. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/gimnez-orenga-2022-herv-env
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