Sommerfeldt, Line, Portilla, Helene, Jacobsen, Line et al. · Acta paediatrica (Oslo, Norway : 1992) · 2011 · DOI
This study looked at genetic differences in genes that control how the body responds to stress and manages heart rate and blood pressure in teenagers with ME/CFS. Researchers found that people with ME/CFS were more likely to have certain genetic variations in two specific genes (COMT and the β₂-adrenergic receptor) compared to healthy people. These genetic differences may affect how well the body's autonomic nervous system (which controls automatic body functions) works during physical stress.
Understanding genetic factors in ME/CFS autonomic dysfunction could help identify biological subtypes of the disease and explain why some patients experience cardiovascular symptoms like dizziness and heart palpitations. This research supports the biological basis of ME/CFS and may eventually enable genetic screening to predict who is at risk or to develop targeted treatments based on individual genetic profiles.
This study does not prove that these genetic polymorphisms cause ME/CFS—it only shows an association in a small sample of adolescents. The findings are correlational rather than causal, and the small sample size and lack of longitudinal follow-up limit generalizability. These genetic variations may be risk factors or markers rather than direct causes of disease.
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
Sommerfeldt, Line, Portilla, Helene, Jacobsen, Line, Gjerstad, Johannes, & Wyller, Vegard Bruun (2011). Polymorphisms of adrenergic cardiovascular control genes are associated with adolescent chronic fatigue syndrome.. Acta paediatrica (Oslo, Norway : 1992). https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1651-2227.2010.02072.x
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-sommerfeldt-2011-polymorphisms-adrenergic,
author = {Sommerfeldt, Line and Portilla, Helene and Jacobsen, Line and Gjerstad, Johannes and Wyller, Vegard Bruun},
title = {Polymorphisms of adrenergic cardiovascular control genes are associated with adolescent chronic fatigue syndrome.},
journal = {Acta paediatrica (Oslo, Norway : 1992)},
year = {2011},
doi = {10.1111/j.1651-2227.2010.02072.x},
note = {PubMed: 21059181},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/sommerfeldt-2011-polymorphisms-adrenergic},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/sommerfeldt-2011-polymorphisms-adrenergic
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