Abstract:
Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a highly debilitating disease with heterogeneous constitutional and neurological complaints. Infection-like symptoms often herald disease onset, but no pathogen or immune defect has been conclusively linked.
In this issue of the JCI, Mandarano et al. illuminate bioenergetic derangements of ME/CFS T cell subsets. CD4+ and CD8+ T cells had impaired resting glycolysis. CD8+ cells additionally showed activation-related metabolic remodeling deficits and decreased mitochondrial membrane potential; a subset had increased resting mitochondrial mass. Immune senescence and exhaustion paradigms offer only partial explanations. Hence, unique mechanisms of disrupted immunometabolism may underlie the complex neuroimmune dysfunction of ME/CFS.
Source: Hornig M. Can the light of immunometabolism cut through “brain fog”? J Clin Invest. 2020 Feb 10. pii: 134985. doi: 10.1172/JCI134985. [Epub ahead of print] https://www.jci.org/articles/view/134985