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Metabolites identified that may help predict ME/CFS

A study led by researchers at the Centre for Infection and Immunity (CII) at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health has identified a constellation of metabolites related to myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). Combining this data with data from an earlier microbiome study, the researchers now report they can predict whether or not someone has the disorder with a confidence of 84%.

The research team analysed blood samples provided by 50 patients with ME/CFS and 50 controls matched for sex and age who were recruited at four clinical sites across the US. Using mass spectrometry, a laboratory technique used to identify molecules by measuring their mass, the scientists found 562 metabolites – microscopic by-products of human and microbial processes such as sugar, fat, and protein molecules. They excluded molecules related to antidepressants and other drugs patients might be taking.

Their metabolomics analysis, among the most detailed and meticulous to date, uncovered altered levels of metabolites, including choline, carnitine and several complex lipids present in patients with ME/CFS. The altered metabolites suggest dysfunction of the mitochrondria, the cellular powerplant, a finding in line with those reported by other research teams. Uniquely, the CII study also reports a second distinct pattern of metabolites in patients with ME/CFS and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), matching earlier findings from their 2017 faecal microbiome study. Half of the patients with ME/CFS also had IBS.

When the researchers combined biomarkers from both the microbiome study and the new metabolome study, they reported a .836 predictive score, indicating an 84% certainty as to the presence of ME/CFS – better than with either study alone.

"This is a strong predictive model that suggests we're getting close to the point where we'll have lab tests that will allow us to say with a high level of certainty who has this disorder," says first author Dr Dorottya Nagy-Szakal, a researcher at CII.

Going forward, the researchers say their data could be used to engineer an animal model for ME/CFS to manifest the same altered metabolome and microbiome. If the animal's behaviour is similar to symptoms seen in ME/CFS patients, they would know the metabolic and microbiome are likely playing a causal role in the manifestation of disease.

An animal model would also allow researchers to test treatments. Currently, there are no approved therapies for ME/CFS.

Active in studying ME/CFS since the 1990s, CII researchers have contributed several important milestones to the study of the disease. In 2012, they ruled out connections between the retroviruses XMRV and PMLV and ME/CFS. In subsequent years, they reported the presence of cytokines and chemokines in blood and cerebrospinal fluid, and evidence of a distinct subtype of patients with IBS. In an ongoing study, the team is examining the immune response of patients to exercise.

"We're closing in on understanding how this disease works," says Dr W Ian Lipkin, director of CII and the NIH Centre for Solutions for ME/CFS, and the John Snow professor of epidemiology at the Mailman School. "We're getting close to the point where we can develop animal models that will allow us to test various hypotheses, as well as potential therapies. For instance, some patients might benefit from probiotics to retune their gastrointestinal microflora or drugs that activate certain neurotransmitter systems."

Abstract
The pathogenesis of ME/CFS, a disease characterized by fatigue, cognitive dysfunction, sleep disturbances, orthostatic intolerance, fever, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and lymphadenopathy, is poorly understood. We report biomarker discovery and topological analysis of plasma metabolomic, fecal bacterial metagenomic, and clinical data from 50 ME/CFS patients and 50 healthy controls. We confirm reports of altered plasma levels of choline, carnitine and complex lipid metabolites and demonstrate that patients with ME/CFS and IBS have increased plasma levels of ceramide. Integration of fecal metagenomic and plasma metabolomic data resulted in a stronger predictive model of ME/CFS (cross-validated AUC = 0.836) than either metagenomic (cross-validated AUC = 0.745) or metabolomic (cross-validated AUC = 0.820) analysis alone. Our findings may provide insights into the pathogenesis of ME/CFS and its subtypes and suggest pathways for the development of diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.

Authors
Dorottya Nagy-Szakal, Dinesh K Barupal, Bohyun Lee, Xiaoyu Che, Brent L Williams, Ellie JR Kahn, Joy E Ukaigwe, Lucinda Bateman, Nancy G Klimas, Anthony L Komaroff, Susan Levine, Jose G Montoya, Daniel L Peterson, Bruce Levin, Mady Hornig, Oliver Fiehn, W Ian Lipkin

[link url="https://www.mailman.columbia.edu/public-health-now/news/insights-metabolites-get-us-closer-test-chronic-fatigue-syndrome"]Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health material[/link]
[link url="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-28477-9"]Scientific Reports abstract[/link]

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