Moriya, Junji, Chen, Rui, Yamakawa, Jun-ichi et al. · Biological & pharmaceutical bulletin · 2011 · DOI
Researchers created mice with chronic fatigue by repeatedly exposing them to a bacterial antigen, which caused them to move less and their brains to shrink in a region called the hippocampus. When they gave these mice resveratrol (a compound found in red grapes), the mice became more active and their hippocampus enlarged. The treatment appeared to work by reducing brain cell death and promoting the growth of new brain cells.
ME/CFS patients often experience cognitive dysfunction and neuroimaging shows hippocampal abnormalities, yet mechanisms are poorly understood. This study identifies a potential therapeutic target (neurogenesis and apoptosis inhibition) and demonstrates that a naturally occurring compound may reverse hippocampal damage, providing preliminary rationale for investigating similar approaches in human patients.
This study does not prove that resveratrol is effective in humans with ME/CFS—it is only an animal model study. It does not establish that bacterial antigens cause human ME/CFS, nor does it prove that hippocampal atrophy is the primary cause (rather than consequence) of fatigue. The findings suggest a possible mechanism but require human clinical trials before clinical recommendations can be made.
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
Moriya, Junji, Chen, Rui, Yamakawa, Jun-ichi, Sasaki, Kenroh, Ishigaki, Yasuhito, & Takahashi, Takashi (2011). Resveratrol improves hippocampal atrophy in chronic fatigue mice by enhancing neurogenesis and inhibiting apoptosis of granular cells.. Biological & pharmaceutical bulletin. https://doi.org/10.1248/bpb.34.354
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-moriya-2011-resveratrol-improves,
author = {Moriya, Junji and Chen, Rui and Yamakawa, Jun-ichi and Sasaki, Kenroh and Ishigaki, Yasuhito and Takahashi, Takashi},
title = {Resveratrol improves hippocampal atrophy in chronic fatigue mice by enhancing neurogenesis and inhibiting apoptosis of granular cells.},
journal = {Biological & pharmaceutical bulletin},
year = {2011},
doi = {10.1248/bpb.34.354},
note = {PubMed: 21372384},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/moriya-2011-resveratrol-improves},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/moriya-2011-resveratrol-improves
Contribute
Private, reviewed by a human. Not a public comment thread.