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Dr Orrange received her BA in Biology at the University of California San Diego and a Masters Degree in Health Sciences at the Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health She received her MD from the USC Keck School of…
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Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; could a retrovirus be the culprit?
In the October 8th issue of Science, some intriguing results were published from a group of scientists who may have connected a retrovirus to chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). I see many CFS sufferers in my private practice and think it’s important for those who feel forgotten, to remember there are scientists out there working on the cause.
Who is this group?
The authors from this study were researchers from the Whittemore Peterson Institute, the Cleveland Clinic and the National Cancer Institute.
What is the news?
There is evidence that a retrovirus named XMRV is frequently present in the blood of patients with CFS. If this were discovered to be the culprit, or a contributor, this could be a major step in the discovery of vital treatment options for millions of patients.
What is a retrovirus?
It is a virus whose genetic material is RNA, not DNA. Retroviruses are unique in that they reproduce by transcribing themselves into DNA. An example of a retrovirus is HIV.
What is the story behind this retrovirus?
The virus, XMRV, was first identified by Robert H. Silverman, PhD, professor in the Department of Cancer Biology at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute. He found XMRV in men who had a specific immune system defect that reduced their ability to fight viral infections.
When was XMRV discovered?
XMRV was originally discovered in prostate cancer tumors by Dr. Robert Silverman. The scientists mentioned above were the first to discover XMRV in the blood of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) patients and these results are the subject of the online release of this article in Science.
How did we figure out to look for this in CFS patients?
A common immune system defect found in patients with CFS and prostate cancer led researchers to look for the virus in their blood samples. In this study, WPI scientists identified XMRV in the blood of 68 of 101 (67%) CFS patients. In contrast, they found that 8 of 218 blood samples from healthy people (3.7%) contained XMRV.
Does this mean that we know XMRV causes CFS?
No, these findings show there is an association between XMRV and CFS but does not prove that XMRV causes CFS. Still, it is intriguing and provides a new hypothesis for a retrovirus link with CFS. It is important to remember that retroviruses like XMRV have also been shown to activate a number of other latent viruses. This could explain why so many different viruses, such as Epstein-Barr virus have at some point been implicated as a cause of CFS.
What could this mean?
Well, a couple of things. If we develop simple blood tests for XMRV antibodies we can establish a better way of diagnosing CFS. If XMRV is found to be a culprit there is also the option down the line of antiviral therapy….but we aren’t there yet.
Dr O.
Who is this group?
The authors from this study were researchers from the Whittemore Peterson Institute, the Cleveland Clinic and the National Cancer Institute.
What is the news?
There is evidence that a retrovirus named XMRV is frequently present in the blood of patients with CFS. If this were discovered to be the culprit, or a contributor, this could be a major step in the discovery of vital treatment options for millions of patients.
What is a retrovirus?
It is a virus whose genetic material is RNA, not DNA. Retroviruses are unique in that they reproduce by transcribing themselves into DNA. An example of a retrovirus is HIV.
What is the story behind this retrovirus?
The virus, XMRV, was first identified by Robert H. Silverman, PhD, professor in the Department of Cancer Biology at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute. He found XMRV in men who had a specific immune system defect that reduced their ability to fight viral infections.
When was XMRV discovered?
XMRV was originally discovered in prostate cancer tumors by Dr. Robert Silverman. The scientists mentioned above were the first to discover XMRV in the blood of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) patients and these results are the subject of the online release of this article in Science.
How did we figure out to look for this in CFS patients?
A common immune system defect found in patients with CFS and prostate cancer led researchers to look for the virus in their blood samples. In this study, WPI scientists identified XMRV in the blood of 68 of 101 (67%) CFS patients. In contrast, they found that 8 of 218 blood samples from healthy people (3.7%) contained XMRV.
Does this mean that we know XMRV causes CFS?
No, these findings show there is an association between XMRV and CFS but does not prove that XMRV causes CFS. Still, it is intriguing and provides a new hypothesis for a retrovirus link with CFS. It is important to remember that retroviruses like XMRV have also been shown to activate a number of other latent viruses. This could explain why so many different viruses, such as Epstein-Barr virus have at some point been implicated as a cause of CFS.
What could this mean?
Well, a couple of things. If we develop simple blood tests for XMRV antibodies we can establish a better way of diagnosing CFS. If XMRV is found to be a culprit there is also the option down the line of antiviral therapy….but we aren’t there yet.
Dr O.
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