Lutz, Lena, Rohrhofer, Johanna, Zehetmayer, Sonja et al. · Biomolecules · 2021 · DOI
This study looked at blood test results from 262 ME/CFS patients to understand problems with their immune systems. Researchers found that nearly two-thirds of patients had low levels of certain immune proteins or cells, while about one-quarter showed signs of inflammation. These findings suggest that immune system dysfunction is a common feature of ME/CFS and could potentially be used to help diagnose or treat the condition.
This study provides objective immunological evidence supporting the biological basis of ME/CFS, demonstrating that immune dysfunction is present in the majority of patients. These findings could inform future diagnostic criteria and targeted therapeutic strategies for ME/CFS, shifting the disease from being viewed primarily as psychiatric toward recognition of underlying physiological abnormalities.
This study does not establish causation or prove that immune dysfunction causes ME/CFS symptoms—it only shows correlation in a single patient population. It does not identify whether immune changes are primary disease mechanisms or secondary consequences of illness. The lack of healthy control comparison and longitudinal follow-up prevents determination of whether these immune patterns are stable biomarkers or fluctuate over time.
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
Lutz, Lena, Rohrhofer, Johanna, Zehetmayer, Sonja, Stingl, Michael, & Untersmayr, Eva (2021). Evaluation of Immune Dysregulation in an Austrian Patient Cohort Suffering from Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.. Biomolecules. https://doi.org/10.3390/biom11091359
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-lutz-2021-evaluation-immune,
author = {Lutz, Lena and Rohrhofer, Johanna and Zehetmayer, Sonja and Stingl, Michael and Untersmayr, Eva},
title = {Evaluation of Immune Dysregulation in an Austrian Patient Cohort Suffering from Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.},
journal = {Biomolecules},
year = {2021},
doi = {10.3390/biom11091359},
note = {PubMed: 34572574},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lutz-2021-evaluation-immune},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-26. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/lutz-2021-evaluation-immune
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