Up-regulation of TGF-b1 mRNA expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of patients with chronic fatigue syndrome

Background/Purpose: It has been shown that the abnormality in immune cells in chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) patients is closely associated with the participation of TGF-b. In order to study the relationship between TGF-b1 and CFS, we investigated the mRNA levels of TGF-b1 in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in patients with CFS. Methods: Fluorescent quantitative real time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (FQ-RT-PCR) was performed to test TGF-b1 mRNA expression in PBMCs in 63 cases of CFS, 50 cases of disease controls, and 50 cases of healthy controls. Results: The mean value of TGF-b1 mRNA expression in CFS patients was DDCtZ1.17 � 0.58, which was significantly higher than the disease controls (DDCt Z 0.07 � 1.08, dfZ 111, p 0.05). Conclusion: The expression of TGF-b1 in PBMCs is significantly elevated in patients with CFS. It might be correlated to the pathogenesis of the disease.