Skeletal Muscle Dysfunction Research

 The goal of these studies is to identify genomic differences that skeletal muscles in patients with ME/CFS show at rest and ultimately, might be identified to be associated with post-exertional malaise (PEM). Genomic differences could be critical to inform potential contributions to the cause of ME/CFS and in particular, the cause of PEM.

These findings could provide drug targets to prevent or treat PEM and could also potentially lead to a biomarker for ME/CFS. To succeed in these studies, multiple patient and control cohorts must be available to participate. These cohorts include well-characterized ME/CFS patients willing to undergo studies with blood and muscle biopsies together with multiple control volunteer cohorts. Healthy volunteers are one comparison cohort, but age, sex, and lifestyle-matched volunteers are a more appropriate second cohort, and most important comparison group. This is because sex, age, and lifestyle (activity level) are critical determinants, that in themselves, will significantly affect the genomics of skeletal muscle independent of any affects that should be attributed to ME/CFS and PEM directly.