Sheng, Rong, Xu, Xianxiang, Tang, Qin et al. · Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM · 2011 · DOI
Researchers tested whether a natural plant compound called polysaccharide from Radix Pseudostellariae (PRP) could help mice recover from fatigue-like symptoms. They found that mice given PRP before being exposed to a virus-like trigger showed less fatigue and better recovery of normal immune and stress hormone function compared to untreated mice.
Understanding how natural compounds modulate immune and neuroendocrine dysfunction may provide insights into potential therapeutic targets in ME/CFS, particularly the role of immune dysregulation and stress hormone abnormalities. This preclinical work could inform future clinical studies of immunomodulating interventions in human patients.
This animal model study does not prove that PRP will be effective in human ME/CFS patients, as mice and humans differ substantially in metabolism, immune response, and disease complexity. The poly I:C model induces acute fatigue-like symptoms rather than replicating the chronic, post-exertional malaise characteristic of human ME/CFS. Efficacy in mice does not establish safety or efficacy in humans without 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
Sheng, Rong, Xu, Xianxiang, Tang, Qin, Bian, Difei, Li, Ying, Qian, Cheng, et al. (2011). Polysaccharide of radix pseudostellariae improves chronic fatigue syndrome induced by poly I:C in mice.. Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM. https://doi.org/10.1093/ecam/nep208
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-sheng-2011-polysaccharide-radix,
author = {Sheng, Rong and Xu, Xianxiang and Tang, Qin and Bian, Difei and Li, Ying and Qian, Cheng and He, Xin and Gao, Xinghua and Pan, Rong and Wang, Chong and Luo, Yubin and Xia, Yufeng and Dai, Yue},
title = {Polysaccharide of radix pseudostellariae improves chronic fatigue syndrome induced by poly I:C in mice.},
journal = {Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM},
year = {2011},
doi = {10.1093/ecam/nep208},
note = {PubMed: 20008077},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/sheng-2011-polysaccharide-radix},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-28. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/sheng-2011-polysaccharide-radix
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