The role of cytokines in the cerebrospinal fluids of patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME) — ASN Events
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  2. Poster Session 1
  3. The role of cytokines in the cerebrospinal fluids of patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME)

The role of cytokines in the cerebrospinal fluids of patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME) (#15)

Sonya Marshall-Gradisnik 1 , Gunnar Gottschalk 2 , Sandra Ramos 1 , Ekua Brenu 1 , Don Staines 1 , Dan Peterson 2
  1. Griffith University, Parklands, QLD, Australia
  2. Simmaron Research , Incline Village, Nevada, USA

Objectives: Previous research has provided evidence for a dysregulation in cytokine levels in the periphery of patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME). To date few studies have examined cytokines in the cerebrospinal fluid. The purpose of this research is to examine the role of cytokines in the symptom presentation of CFS/ME patients.

Methods: Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) was collected from 18 CFS/ME patients and 5 healthy controls. The CSF samples were examined for the expression of 27 cytokines [interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-1ra, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-7, IL-8, IL-9, IL-10, IL-12p70, IL-13, IL-15, IL-17, basic FGF, eotaxin, G-CSF, GM-CSF, IFN-γ, IP-10, MCP-1 (MCAF), MIP-1α, MIP-1β, PDGF-BB, RANTES, TNF-α and VEGF] using the bio-plex human cytokine 27-plex assay.

Results: Of the cytokines examined, only four were significantly reduced in the CFS/ME patients in comparison to the controls.

Conclusions: The results show a decrease in pro-inflammatory cytokines in the CSF of CFS/ME patients and this may contribute to the clinical disease progression.