Kuwabara, Natsuko, Itoh, Yasuhiko, Igarshi, Tohru et al. · Autoimmunity · 2009 · DOI
This study found that a specific antibody called anti-Sa, detected in people with chronic fatigue and positive autoimmune markers, is actually targeting a protein called LEDGF/p75. Researchers developed a simple blood test (ELISA) to detect this antibody more accurately than previous methods. This new test could help doctors identify which patients with chronic fatigue may have an autoimmune component to their illness.
Identifying specific autoantibodies in ME/CFS patients could provide an objective diagnostic biomarker and suggest autoimmune mechanisms underlying the disease. A standardized ELISA assay for anti-LEDGF/p75 may enable consistent diagnosis and help stratify CFS patients for research and clinical trials. This work bridges findings from different research groups and provides a practical diagnostic tool.
This study does not prove that anti-LEDGF/p75 causes CFS or that it is present in all CFS patients—only that it appears in some AIFS and CFS patients with positive ANA. The study does not establish the clinical significance, pathological role, or prognostic value of this antibody. The cross-sectional design cannot determine whether the antibody precedes symptom onset or is merely an epiphenomenon.
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
Kuwabara, Natsuko, Itoh, Yasuhiko, Igarshi, Tohru, & Fukunaga, Yoshitaka (2009). Autoantibodies to lens epithelium-derived growth factor/transcription co-activator P75 (LEDGF/P75) in children with chronic nonspecific complaints and with positive antinuclear antibodies.. Autoimmunity. https://doi.org/10.1080/08916930902736663
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-kuwabara-2009-autoantibodies-lens,
author = {Kuwabara, Natsuko and Itoh, Yasuhiko and Igarshi, Tohru and Fukunaga, Yoshitaka},
title = {Autoantibodies to lens epithelium-derived growth factor/transcription co-activator P75 (LEDGF/P75) in children with chronic nonspecific complaints and with positive antinuclear antibodies.},
journal = {Autoimmunity},
year = {2009},
doi = {10.1080/08916930902736663},
note = {PubMed: 19657776},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/kuwabara-2009-autoantibodies-lens},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/kuwabara-2009-autoantibodies-lens
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