Kuratsune, H, Yamaguti, K, Takahashi, M et al. · Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America · 1994 · DOI
This study found that people with ME/CFS have lower levels of acylcarnitine, a substance that helps muscles produce energy, in their blood. Because acylcarnitine plays an important role in how muscles use energy, this deficiency might explain why ME/CFS patients experience fatigue, muscle pain, and weakness. Importantly, acylcarnitine levels tended to improve as patients recovered, suggesting it could be useful for tracking disease severity.
This research identifies a specific biochemical abnormality in ME/CFS that connects muscle symptoms to cellular energy metabolism, potentially providing both a biomarker for disease monitoring and a mechanistic target for future therapeutic interventions. Understanding the role of acylcarnitine deficiency could help explain the post-exertional malaise and exercise intolerance that significantly impact patients' quality of life.
This study does not prove that acylcarnitine deficiency causes ME/CFS symptoms—it only shows an association. The study cannot determine whether the deficiency is a primary cause, a consequence of the disease process, or secondary to reduced activity levels. Additionally, findings from a single timepoint cannot establish causality or definitively demonstrate the utility of acylcarnitine measurement in clinical practice without prospective validation.
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
Kuratsune, H, Yamaguti, K, Takahashi, M, Misaki, H, Tagawa, S, & Kitani, T (1994). Acylcarnitine deficiency in chronic fatigue syndrome.. Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America. https://doi.org/10.1093/clinids/18.supplement_1.s62
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-kuratsune-1994-acylcarnitine-deficiency,
author = {Kuratsune, H and Yamaguti, K and Takahashi, M and Misaki, H and Tagawa, S and Kitani, T},
title = {Acylcarnitine deficiency in chronic fatigue syndrome.},
journal = {Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America},
year = {1994},
doi = {10.1093/clinids/18.supplement_1.s62},
note = {PubMed: 8148455},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/kuratsune-1994-acylcarnitine-deficiency},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-25. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/kuratsune-1994-acylcarnitine-deficiency
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