Association of circulating biomarkers with illness severity measures differentiates myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome and post-COVID-19 condition: a prospective pilot cohort study
Abstract Background Accumulating evidence suggests that autonomic dysfunction and persistent systemic inflammation are common clinical features in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) and long COVID. However, there is limited knowledge regarding their potential association wit...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2024-04-01
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| Series: | Journal of Translational Medicine |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12967-024-05148-0 |
| _version_ | 1827284103101153280 |
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| author | Joan Carles Domingo Federica Battistini Begoña Cordobilla Maria Cleofé Zaragozá Ramón Sanmartin-Sentañes Jose Alegre-Martin Trinitat Cambras Jesus Castro-Marrero |
| author_facet | Joan Carles Domingo Federica Battistini Begoña Cordobilla Maria Cleofé Zaragozá Ramón Sanmartin-Sentañes Jose Alegre-Martin Trinitat Cambras Jesus Castro-Marrero |
| author_sort | Joan Carles Domingo |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Accumulating evidence suggests that autonomic dysfunction and persistent systemic inflammation are common clinical features in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) and long COVID. However, there is limited knowledge regarding their potential association with circulating biomarkers and illness severity in these conditions. Methods This single-site, prospective, cross-sectional, pilot cohort study aimed to distinguish between the two patient populations by using self-reported outcome measures and circulating biomarkers of endothelial function and systemic inflammation status. Thirty-one individuals with ME/CFS, 23 individuals with long COVID, and 31 matched sedentary healthy controls were included. All study participants underwent non-invasive cardiovascular hemodynamic challenge testing (10 min NASA lean test) for assessment of orthostatic intolerance. Regression analysis was used to examine associations between outcome measures and circulating biomarkers in the study participants. Classification across groups was based on principal component and discriminant analyses. Results Four ME/CFS patients (13%), 1 with long COVID (4%), and 1 healthy control (3%) presented postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) using the 10-min NASA lean test. Compared with matched healthy controls, ME/CFS and long COVID subjects showed higher levels of ET-1 (p < 0.05) and VCAM-1 (p < 0.001), and lower levels of nitrites (NOx assessed as NO2 - + NO3 -) (p < 0.01). ME/CFS patients also showed higher levels of serpin E1 (PAI-1) and E-selectin than did both long COVID and matched control subjects (p < 0.01 in all cases). Long COVID patients had lower TSP-1 levels than did ME/CFS patients and matched sedentary healthy controls (p < 0.001). As for inflammation biomarkers, both long COVID and ME/CFS subjects had higher levels of TNF-α than did matched healthy controls (p < 0.01 in both comparisons). Compared with controls, ME/CFS patients had higher levels of IL-1β (p < 0.001), IL-4 (p < 0.001), IL-6 (p < 0.01), IL-10 (p < 0.001), IP-10 (p < 0.05), and leptin (p < 0.001). Principal component analysis supported differentiation between groups based on self-reported outcome measures and biomarkers of endothelial function and inflammatory status in the study population. Conclusions Our findings revealed that combining biomarkers of endothelial dysfunction and inflammation with outcome measures differentiate ME/CFS and Long COVID using robust discriminant analysis of principal components. Further research is needed to provide a more comprehensive characterization of these underlying pathomechanisms, which could be promising targets for therapeutic and preventive strategies in these conditions. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T09:48:44Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-74b49f3d59be4ab481aedd0488faca50 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1479-5876 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T09:48:44Z |
| publishDate | 2024-04-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Translational Medicine |
| spelling | doaj.art-74b49f3d59be4ab481aedd0488faca502024-04-14T11:27:47ZengBMCJournal of Translational Medicine1479-58762024-04-0122111910.1186/s12967-024-05148-0Association of circulating biomarkers with illness severity measures differentiates myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome and post-COVID-19 condition: a prospective pilot cohort studyJoan Carles Domingo0Federica Battistini1Begoña Cordobilla2Maria Cleofé Zaragozá3Ramón Sanmartin-Sentañes4Jose Alegre-Martin5Trinitat Cambras6Jesus Castro-Marrero7Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biomedicine, Faculty of Biology, University of BarcelonaMolecular Modelling and Bioinformatics Group, Institute for Research in Biomedicine, Barcelona Institute of Science and TechnologyDepartment of Biochemistry and Molecular Biomedicine, Faculty of Biology, University of BarcelonaClinical Research Department, Laboratorios ViñasDivision of Rheumatology, Clinical Unit in ME/CFS and Long COVID, Vall d’Hebron University Hospital, Universitat Autònoma de BarcelonaDivision of Rheumatology, Clinical Unit in ME/CFS and Long COVID, Vall d’Hebron University Hospital, Universitat Autònoma de BarcelonaDepartment of Biochemistry and Physiology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Food Sciences, University of BarcelonaDivision of Rheumatology, Research Unit in ME/CFS and Long COVID, Vall d’Hebron Research Institute, Universitat Autònoma de BarcelonaAbstract Background Accumulating evidence suggests that autonomic dysfunction and persistent systemic inflammation are common clinical features in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) and long COVID. However, there is limited knowledge regarding their potential association with circulating biomarkers and illness severity in these conditions. Methods This single-site, prospective, cross-sectional, pilot cohort study aimed to distinguish between the two patient populations by using self-reported outcome measures and circulating biomarkers of endothelial function and systemic inflammation status. Thirty-one individuals with ME/CFS, 23 individuals with long COVID, and 31 matched sedentary healthy controls were included. All study participants underwent non-invasive cardiovascular hemodynamic challenge testing (10 min NASA lean test) for assessment of orthostatic intolerance. Regression analysis was used to examine associations between outcome measures and circulating biomarkers in the study participants. Classification across groups was based on principal component and discriminant analyses. Results Four ME/CFS patients (13%), 1 with long COVID (4%), and 1 healthy control (3%) presented postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) using the 10-min NASA lean test. Compared with matched healthy controls, ME/CFS and long COVID subjects showed higher levels of ET-1 (p < 0.05) and VCAM-1 (p < 0.001), and lower levels of nitrites (NOx assessed as NO2 - + NO3 -) (p < 0.01). ME/CFS patients also showed higher levels of serpin E1 (PAI-1) and E-selectin than did both long COVID and matched control subjects (p < 0.01 in all cases). Long COVID patients had lower TSP-1 levels than did ME/CFS patients and matched sedentary healthy controls (p < 0.001). As for inflammation biomarkers, both long COVID and ME/CFS subjects had higher levels of TNF-α than did matched healthy controls (p < 0.01 in both comparisons). Compared with controls, ME/CFS patients had higher levels of IL-1β (p < 0.001), IL-4 (p < 0.001), IL-6 (p < 0.01), IL-10 (p < 0.001), IP-10 (p < 0.05), and leptin (p < 0.001). Principal component analysis supported differentiation between groups based on self-reported outcome measures and biomarkers of endothelial function and inflammatory status in the study population. Conclusions Our findings revealed that combining biomarkers of endothelial dysfunction and inflammation with outcome measures differentiate ME/CFS and Long COVID using robust discriminant analysis of principal components. Further research is needed to provide a more comprehensive characterization of these underlying pathomechanisms, which could be promising targets for therapeutic and preventive strategies in these conditions.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12967-024-05148-0BiomarkersChronic fatigue syndromeEndothelial dysfunctionInflammationLong COVIDMyalgic encephalomyelitis |
| spellingShingle | Joan Carles Domingo Federica Battistini Begoña Cordobilla Maria Cleofé Zaragozá Ramón Sanmartin-Sentañes Jose Alegre-Martin Trinitat Cambras Jesus Castro-Marrero Association of circulating biomarkers with illness severity measures differentiates myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome and post-COVID-19 condition: a prospective pilot cohort study Journal of Translational Medicine Biomarkers Chronic fatigue syndrome Endothelial dysfunction Inflammation Long COVID Myalgic encephalomyelitis |
| title | Association of circulating biomarkers with illness severity measures differentiates myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome and post-COVID-19 condition: a prospective pilot cohort study |
| title_full | Association of circulating biomarkers with illness severity measures differentiates myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome and post-COVID-19 condition: a prospective pilot cohort study |
| title_fullStr | Association of circulating biomarkers with illness severity measures differentiates myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome and post-COVID-19 condition: a prospective pilot cohort study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Association of circulating biomarkers with illness severity measures differentiates myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome and post-COVID-19 condition: a prospective pilot cohort study |
| title_short | Association of circulating biomarkers with illness severity measures differentiates myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome and post-COVID-19 condition: a prospective pilot cohort study |
| title_sort | association of circulating biomarkers with illness severity measures differentiates myalgic encephalomyelitis chronic fatigue syndrome and post covid 19 condition a prospective pilot cohort study |
| topic | Biomarkers Chronic fatigue syndrome Endothelial dysfunction Inflammation Long COVID Myalgic encephalomyelitis |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12967-024-05148-0 |
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