Toriola, Mubaraq A, Timlin, Emma, Bulbule, Sarojini et al. · Inflammation research : official journal of the European Histamine Research Society ... [et al.] · 2026 · DOI
This study examined a protein called ATG13 that helps cells clean up damaged parts, particularly in immune cells called macrophages. When ATG13 was reduced, these immune cells couldn't work properly, their energy-producing structures (mitochondria) became dysfunctional, and they created too much harmful oxidative stress. This triggered the immune cells to switch into an inflammatory state and caused muscle weakness and nerve damage in a mouse model.
This study identifies a potential molecular mechanism linking cellular autophagy dysfunction to excessive inflammation and post-exertional malaise—a hallmark symptom of ME/CFS where patients experience severe fatigue following minor exertion. Understanding how ATG13 deficiency leads to immune dysregulation and mitochondrial dysfunction could guide development of targeted therapies for ME/CFS patients who currently have no curative treatments.
This study does not prove that ATG13 mutations or deficiency cause ME/CFS in humans, as it uses a genetically engineered mouse model with artificially depleted ATG13. The findings do not establish whether ATG13 dysfunction is a primary cause versus a consequence of ME/CFS pathology. It also does not demonstrate that correcting ATG13 expression would reverse symptoms in human patients.
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
Toriola, Mubaraq A, Timlin, Emma, Bulbule, Sarojini, Reyes, Amy, Adedeji, Omolola Mary, Gottschalk, C Gunnar, et al. (2026). Genetic depletion of the early autophagy protein ATG13 impairs mitochondrial energy metabolism, augments oxidative stress, induces the polarization of macrophages to the M1 inflammatory mode, and compromises myelin integrity in skeletal muscle.. Inflammation research : official journal of the European Histamine Research Society ... [et al.]. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00011-025-02158-6
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-toriola-2026-genetic-depletion,
author = {Toriola, Mubaraq A and Timlin, Emma and Bulbule, Sarojini and Reyes, Amy and Adedeji, Omolola Mary and Gottschalk, C Gunnar and Barua, Animesh and Arnold, Leggy A and Roy, Avik},
title = {Genetic depletion of the early autophagy protein ATG13 impairs mitochondrial energy metabolism, augments oxidative stress, induces the polarization of macrophages to the M1 inflammatory mode, and compromises myelin integrity in skeletal muscle.},
journal = {Inflammation research : official journal of the European Histamine Research Society ... [et al.]},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.1007/s00011-025-02158-6},
note = {PubMed: 41591477},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/toriola-2026-genetic-depletion},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-29. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/toriola-2026-genetic-depletion
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