Lo, Shyh-Ching, Pripuzova, Natalia, Li, Bingjie et al. · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2010 · DOI
This study looked for traces of a virus called MLV (murine leukemia virus-related virus) in the blood of ME/CFS patients and healthy people. Researchers found viral genetic material in 86.5% of CFS patients compared to only 6.8% of healthy controls. The viruses found were diverse rather than identical, and some patients who tested positive years earlier still showed the virus in follow-up testing.
This study provides evidence of a potential viral association in ME/CFS that differs from previous reports, suggesting a diverse group of MLV-related viruses rather than a single uniform virus. If confirmed, identifying a viral trigger could reshape understanding of ME/CFS etiology and may have implications for blood supply safety. The persistence of viral sequences over 15 years raises questions about chronic infection as a contributing mechanism.
This study does not prove that MLV-related viruses cause ME/CFS—finding a virus in patients does not establish causation, only association. It does not demonstrate that these viruses are functional or pathogenic, nor does it show whether the viruses are the cause, a consequence, or an incidental finding in ME/CFS. The failure of other groups to replicate the original XMRV findings suggests significant methodological challenges in this research area.
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
Lo, Shyh-Ching, Pripuzova, Natalia, Li, Bingjie, Komaroff, Anthony L, Hung, Guo-Chiuan, Wang, Richard, et al. (2010). Detection of MLV-related virus gene sequences in blood of patients with chronic fatigue syndrome and healthy blood donors.. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1006901107
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-lo-2010-detection-mlv,
author = {Lo, Shyh-Ching and Pripuzova, Natalia and Li, Bingjie and Komaroff, Anthony L and Hung, Guo-Chiuan and Wang, Richard and Alter, Harvey J},
title = {Detection of MLV-related virus gene sequences in blood of patients with chronic fatigue syndrome and healthy blood donors.},
journal = {Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America},
year = {2010},
doi = {10.1073/pnas.1006901107},
note = {PubMed: 20798047},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lo-2010-detection-mlv},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lo-2010-detection-mlv
Contribute
Private, reviewed by a human. Not a public comment thread.