Nijs, Jo, Frémont, Marc · Expert opinion on therapeutic targets · 2008 · DOI
This review examines how the immune system's internal functions may be broken in ME/CFS patients. Researchers found that a specific immune protein called RNase L appears to be damaged in people with this illness, and this damage may be connected to why patients have low natural killer cell function and poor exercise tolerance. The authors suggest that targeting this damaged protein pathway could be a promising new treatment approach.
This study identifies a specific molecular mechanism that may explain multiple symptoms of ME/CFS, offering a concrete biological target for developing new treatments. Understanding these intracellular immune dysfunctions could lead to therapies that address the root cause rather than just symptoms, potentially improving exercise tolerance and immune function in patients.
This review does not prove that RNase L dysfunction causes ME/CFS or that correcting it will cure the disease; it establishes association and dysregulation patterns only. The study does not provide clinical trial evidence that any specific drug treatment would be effective. The origin of the immune dysregulation remains unknown and speculative.
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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Primary citation
Nijs, Jo & Frémont, Marc (2008). Intracellular immune dysfunction in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome: state of the art and therapeutic implications.. Expert opinion on therapeutic targets. https://doi.org/10.1517/14728222.12.3.281
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-nijs-2008-intracellular-immune,
author = {Nijs, Jo and Frémont, Marc},
title = {Intracellular immune dysfunction in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome: state of the art and therapeutic implications.},
journal = {Expert opinion on therapeutic targets},
year = {2008},
doi = {10.1517/14728222.12.3.281},
note = {PubMed: 18269338},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/nijs-2008-intracellular-immune},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-28. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/nijs-2008-intracellular-immune
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