Zinn, Marcie L, Zinn, Mark A, Jason, Leonard A · Applied psychophysiology and biofeedback · 2016 · DOI
Researchers used EEG brain scans to measure electrical activity and communication between brain regions in 9 ME/CFS patients and 9 healthy controls. They found that people with ME/CFS had weaker electrical activity in the back of the brain and reduced communication between three important brain networks that help with thinking, attention, and rest. These differences suggest that ME/CFS involves measurable changes in how the brain works.
This study provides objective neurophysiological evidence that ME/CFS involves measurable brain dysfunction, supporting the biological basis of the disorder rather than attributing symptoms to psychological causes. Identifying specific brain network abnormalities could eventually help develop targeted treatments and establish biomarkers for diagnosis.
This pilot study cannot establish causation or determine whether brain network changes cause ME/CFS symptoms or result from the illness. The very small sample size (9 per group) limits confidence in the findings, and results must be replicated in larger populations before drawing firm conclusions about ME/CFS pathology.
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
Zinn, Marcie L, Zinn, Mark A, & Jason, Leonard A (2016). Intrinsic Functional Hypoconnectivity in Core Neurocognitive Networks Suggests Central Nervous System Pathology in Patients with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis: A Pilot Study.. Applied psychophysiology and biofeedback. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10484-016-9331-3
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-zinn-2016-intrinsic-functional,
author = {Zinn, Marcie L and Zinn, Mark A and Jason, Leonard A},
title = {Intrinsic Functional Hypoconnectivity in Core Neurocognitive Networks Suggests Central Nervous System Pathology in Patients with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis: A Pilot Study.},
journal = {Applied psychophysiology and biofeedback},
year = {2016},
doi = {10.1007/s10484-016-9331-3},
note = {PubMed: 26869373},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/zinn-2016-intrinsic-functional},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/zinn-2016-intrinsic-functional
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