Scientists say they may have found the cause of chronic fatigue syndrome – a condition that has baffled doctors for decades. The mysterious disorder, also known as Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME), causes long-term tiredness and aching limbs that don’t ease with rest. It affects 250,000 people in Britain and 17 million people worldwide. It was labelled ‘yuppie flu’ in the 1980s because no underlying cause could be found.
Now researchers have linked the syndrome to a retrovirus also seen in prostate cancer patients. Researchers found the virus, known as XMRV, in the blood of 68 out of 101 chronic fatigue syndrome patients. The same virus showed up in only 8 of 218 healthy people.
But further blood tests revealed 95 per cent of the ME patients had antibodies to the virus. This indicated they had been infected with XMRV.
The XMRV virus is a retrovirus, like the HIV virus that causes AIDS. As with all viruses, a retrovirus copies its genetic code into the DNA of its host but uses RNA – a working form of DNA – instead of using DNA to do so.
Known formally as xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus, XMRV has also been found in some prostate tumors and is also known to cause leukemia and tumors in animals.
[Source]
Chapter: Health :: 14 January 2010
