Science

Researchers conducting the world’s largest DNA study of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) today revealed “genetic signals” that might help explain how the condition arises. The poorly understood illness, which is estimated to affect many millions of people worldwide, is associated with debilitating symptoms including extreme exhaustion and difficulty thinking clearly.

Using DNA from more than 15,000 people diagnosed with the disorder, scientists identified eight genomic regions associated with ME/CFS, including some overlapping with or near genes linked to immune responses to infection. The findings, which were posted in a preprint by the University of Edinburgh and have not undergone peer review, provide valuable data on the condition, even if diagnostics and treatments remain far away, say researchers not involved in the work.

The study provides “validation of ME/CFS as a biomedical condition and an important corrective to psychologizing ‘all in the mind’ perspectives on the disease,” says Jos Bosch, a biopsychologist and epidemiologist at the University of Amsterdam who provided some consulting for the project but was not involved in the research. Although this kind of genetic study can’t conclusively pinpoint causes of the condition, the areas of the genome identified are worth further study, he adds.