Shao, Changzhuan, Song, Jing, Zhao, Shanguang et al. · Polymers · 2018 · DOI
Researchers tested whether a compound called selenium-polysaccharide (Se-TP) from a Chinese green tea called Ziyang could help rats with fatigue similar to ME/CFS. They found that the treatment improved certain markers in the rats' blood and urine, suggesting it may work by affecting how the body makes and uses steroid hormones and processes amino acids.
This study explores a potential therapeutic agent for ME/CFS using a metabolic rather than purely symptomatic approach, which could open new avenues for treatment research. Understanding the metabolic pathways involved in fatigue—particularly steroid hormone dysregulation—may help researchers develop targeted therapies for patients with ME/CFS.
This animal study does not establish that Se-TP is effective in human ME/CFS patients; findings in rats do not automatically translate to clinical benefit. The study identifies metabolic associations but cannot prove causation—the observed metabolic changes may be correlation rather than the mechanism driving symptom improvement. No placebo control is mentioned, and it does not address whether the rat model accurately represents human ME/CFS pathophysiology.
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
Shao, Changzhuan, Song, Jing, Zhao, Shanguang, Jiang, Hongke, Wang, Baoping, & Chi, Aiping (2018). Therapeutic Effect and Metabolic Mechanism of A Selenium-Polysaccharide from <i>Ziyang</i> Green Tea on Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.. Polymers. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym10111269
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-shao-2018-therapeutic-effect,
author = {Shao, Changzhuan and Song, Jing and Zhao, Shanguang and Jiang, Hongke and Wang, Baoping and Chi, Aiping},
title = {Therapeutic Effect and Metabolic Mechanism of A Selenium-Polysaccharide from <i>Ziyang</i> Green Tea on Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.},
journal = {Polymers},
year = {2018},
doi = {10.3390/polym10111269},
note = {PubMed: 30961194},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/shao-2018-therapeutic-effect},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/shao-2018-therapeutic-effect
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