Horizon 2020 ietvara programma pētniecībai un tehnoloģiskai attīstībai

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Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome – Evidence for an autoimmune disease
(2018) Sotzny, Franziska; Blanco, Julià; Capelli, Enrica; Castro-Marrero, Jesús; Steiner, Sophie; Murovska, Modra; Scheibenbogen, Carmen; on behalf of the European Network on ME/CFS (EUROMENE)
Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is a frequent and severe chronic disease drastically impairing life quality. The underlying pathomechanismis incompletely understood yet but there is convincing evidence that in at least a subset of patients ME/CFS has an autoimmune etiology. In this review, we will discuss current autoimmune aspects forME/CFS. Immune dysregulation inME/CFS has been frequently described including changes in cytokine profiles and immunoglobulin levels, T- and B-cell phenotype and a decrease of natural killer cell cytotoxicity.Moreover, autoantibodies against various antigens including neurotransmitter receptors have been recently identified in ME/CFS individuals by several groups. Consistently, clinical trials from Norway have shown that B-cell depletion with rituximab results in clinical benefits in about half of ME/CFS patients. Furthermore, recent studies have provided evidence for severemetabolic disturbances presumably mediated by serum autoantibodies in ME/CFS. Therefore, further efforts are required to delineate the role of autoantibodies in the onset and pathomechanisms of ME/CFS in order to better understand and properly treat this disease.