A gene signature for post-infectious chronic fatigue syndrome

Gow, J.W., Hagan, S., Herzyk, P. , Cannon, C., Behan, P.O. and Chaudhuri, A. (2009) A gene signature for post-infectious chronic fatigue syndrome. BMC Medical Genomics, 2(38), (doi: 10.1186/1755-8794-2-38)

Abstract

Background: At present, there are no clinically reliable disease markers for chronic fatigue syndrome. DNA chip microarray technology provides a method for examining the differential expression of mRNA from a large number of genes. Our hypothesis was that a gene expression signature, generated by microarray assays, could help identify genes which are dysregulated in patients with post-infectious CFS and so help identify biomarkers for the condition. Methods: Human genome-wide Affymetrix GeneChip arrays (39,000 transcripts derived from 33,000 gene sequences) were used to compare the levels of gene expression in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells of male patients with post-infectious chronic fatigue (n = 8) and male healthy control subjects (n = 7). Results: Patients and healthy subjects differed significantly in the level of expression of 366 genes. Analysis of the differentially expressed genes indicated functional implications in immune modulation, oxidative stress and apoptosis. Prototype biomarkers were identified on the basis of differential levels of gene expression and possible biological significance Conclusion: Differential expression of key genes identified in this study offer an insight into the possible mechanism of chronic fatigue following infection. The representative biomarkers identified in this research appear promising as potential biomarkers for diagnosis and treatment.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Behan, Professor Peter and Herzyk, Dr Pawel and Cannon, Mrs Cecilia and Hagan, Dr Suzanne
• Authors: Gow, J.W., Hagan, S., Herzyk, P., Cannon, C., Behan, P.O., and Chaudhuri, A.
• Subjects: Q Science > QH Natural history > QH301 Biology
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Molecular Biosciences
• Journal Name: BMC Medical Genomics
• Publisher: BioMed Central
• ISSN: 1755-8794
• ISSN (Online): 1755-8794
• Published Online: 25 June 2009
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2009 The Authors
• First Published: First published in BMC Medical Genomics 2(38)
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher