Meyer, Carlotto, Heidecke, Harald · Frontiers in bioscience (Landmark edition) · 2018 · DOI
This review examines how the body's own antibodies (immune proteins) can mistakenly attack receptors on cell surfaces called GPCRs, which are involved in many bodily functions. The authors summarize evidence that these misdirected antibodies may play a role in several diseases, including chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), heart disease, and autoimmune conditions. Understanding these antibodies could help doctors develop better diagnostic tests and treatments.
This review establishes GPCR antibodies as a potentially unifying mechanism across multiple diseases including ME/CFS, which may explain some immune dysfunction in post-viral fatigue states. For ME/CFS patients and researchers, identifying specific GPCR antibody signatures could lead to objective biomarkers for diagnosis and targeted immunotherapies.
This review does not prove that GPCR antibodies cause ME/CFS—it describes an association and proposed mechanism based on existing literature. It does not establish whether GPCR antibodies are primary drivers of disease or secondary consequences of immune activation. The review also does not provide new primary data specific to ME/CFS populations.
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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