Mitra, Achintya, Sur, Tapas Kumar, Upadhyay, Sachhidananda et al. · Journal of Ayurveda and integrative medicine · 2018 · DOI
Researchers tested an orchid extract called Coelogyne cristata on aging rats that had been made fatigued through repeated forced swimming. The extract improved the rats' movement, reduced depression-like and anxiety-like behaviors, and restored protective antioxidant levels in their brains, performing similarly to ginseng, a known stress-relief supplement.
Understanding how plant-derived compounds may restore antioxidant balance in the nervous system could inform exploration of new therapeutic approaches for ME/CFS, particularly given emerging evidence that oxidative stress may contribute to ME/CFS pathology. This research bridges traditional medicine with modern neurobiology.
This animal study does not establish that Coelogyne cristata would be safe or effective in humans with ME/CFS. Forced swimming-induced fatigue in aged rats is not equivalent to the complex, multi-system pathology of human ME/CFS. Results from rats cannot be directly translated to patient populations without human clinical trials.
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
Mitra, Achintya, Sur, Tapas Kumar, Upadhyay, Sachhidananda, Bhattacharyya, Dipankar, & Hazra, Jayram (2018). Effect of Coelogyne cristata Lindley in alleviation of chronic fatigue syndrome in aged Wistar rats.. Journal of Ayurveda and integrative medicine. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaim.2017.06.011
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-mitra-2018-effect-coelogyne,
author = {Mitra, Achintya and Sur, Tapas Kumar and Upadhyay, Sachhidananda and Bhattacharyya, Dipankar and Hazra, Jayram},
title = {Effect of Coelogyne cristata Lindley in alleviation of chronic fatigue syndrome in aged Wistar rats.},
journal = {Journal of Ayurveda and integrative medicine},
year = {2018},
doi = {10.1016/j.jaim.2017.06.011},
note = {PubMed: 29102461},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/mitra-2018-effect-coelogyne},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/mitra-2018-effect-coelogyne
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