Heng, Benjamin, Gunasegaran, Bavani, Krishnamurthy, Shivani et al. · Cell reports. Medicine · 2025 · DOI
This study examined blood samples from ME/CFS patients and healthy people to understand what goes wrong in the body. Researchers found that immune cells in ME/CFS patients are struggling to make energy (ATP), the fuel that powers our cells. The immune system also showed signs of being immature or worn out, and blood proteins related to clotting and blood vessel problems were elevated, suggesting blood vessel dysfunction may contribute to ME/CFS symptoms.
This study provides concrete biological evidence that ME/CFS involves measurable abnormalities in energy production, immune function, and blood vessel health—supporting the view that ME/CFS is a real physiological disease, not psychological. These findings could eventually lead to diagnostic tests and targeted treatments addressing the underlying causes rather than just managing symptoms.
This study does not prove that energy metabolism problems, immune changes, or vascular dysfunction directly cause ME/CFS symptoms or whether these are primary or secondary consequences of the illness. It identifies associations in one point-in-time snapshot and cannot establish whether these biomarkers change over disease course or predict treatment response.
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 →
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