Metabolic features of chronic fatigue syndrome

Metabolic features of chronic fatigue syndrome is a groundbreaking paper by Naviaux Lab on the Metabolic study of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) patients which demonstrates significant blood chemical signatures.


 * Chronic fatigue syndrome is a multisystem disease that causes long-term pain and disability. It is difficult to diagnose because of its protean symptoms and the lack of a diagnostic laboratory test. We report that targeted, broad-spectrum metabolomics of plasma not only revealed a characteristic chemical signature but also revealed an unexpected underlying biology. Metabolomics showed that chronic fatigue syndrome is a highly concerted hypometabolic response to environmental stress that traces to mitochondria and was similar to the classically studied developmental state of dauer. This discovery opens a fresh path for the rational development of new therapeutics and identifies metabolomics as a powerful tool to identify the chemical differences that contribute to health and disease.

It was published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the Unites Stats of America (PNAS) on August 24, 2016. This paper is open data and open access.

Authors
Ronald Davis (Editor), Robert Naviaux, Jane C. Naviaux, Kefeng Li, A. Taylor Bright, William A. Alaynick, Lin Wang, Asha Baxter, Neil Nathan, Wayne Anderson, Eric Gordon

Analysis of Metabolic features of chronic fatigue syndrome

 * MEAction - Naviaux’s metabolism paper is about as big as you think''


 * For those who are wondering at the results and their implications, Naviaux’s study in a nutshell states that the cells of ME patients are in a sort of protective hibernation, limiting their consumption of resources and engaging in a hypometabolic state as a response to infection or other stressors. By examining patients’ metabolites in detail, it was found that this degree of protective hibernation correlates directly to clinical severity.


 * Naviaux also posits that cells in ME/CFS are cells under enormous stress, for which they create a series of defenses, metaphorically installing a superior lock and alarm system and hiding all the valuables. However, some pathogens know the code to get in,  and when the resources are hidden, the host can’t use them, either.  Both of these aspects of this mode of cellular defense have profound implications for symptomology.


 * Health Rising - The Core Problem in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Identified? Naviaux’s Metabolomics Study Breaks Fresh Ground


 * Naviaux believes the mitochondria are able to sense every kind of danger – from pathogens to pH changes to toxic elements from pesticides, heavy metals, etc. to inflammation. They sense trouble in the form of an infection when they detect a drop in voltage caused by the diversion of electrons (NADH / NADPH) to make viral components or respond to a broad variety of toxins.


 * In the cell danger response (CDR) the mitochondria respond instantaneously to that loss by decreasing their oxygen consumption – thus thwarting pathogens from using the building blocks of the cell to replicate. Because the oxygen is no longer being used, it builds up in the cells causing a oxidatively charged environment which interrupts viral synthesis. The CDR also stiffens the membrane of the cell to stop pathogens from exiting it and warns other cells of the danger and emits ATP in order to warn other cells to get their defenses up."

Six questions answered on Metabolic features of chronic fatigue syndrome
Dr. Robert Naviaux answers questions about his findings.


 * 1) Real illness with chemical signature and CFS is Metabolic, not all in the mind
 * 2) Cell Danger Response (CDR) does not switch off and results in a "siege metabolism"
 * 3) People do not hibernate, CFS has a metabolic signature of dauer
 * 4) Men and women are different in this disease, not related to testosterone or estrogen
 * 5) Epigenetics and DNA Methylation pathways relevant to this disease
 * 6) This paper is not related to treatment although Metabolomics will be relevant to any clinical trial of CFS

Learn more

 * Lipid raft
 * Methylation cycle hypothesis