HERV-K and HERV-W transcriptional activity in Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/ Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (CFSMS) is an incapacitating chronic disease that dramatically compromise the life quality. The CFS/ME pathogenesis is multifactorial, and it is believed that immunological, metabolic and environmental factors play a role. It is well documented an increased activity of Human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) from different families in autoimmune and neurological diseases, making these elements good candidates for biomarkers or even triggers for such diseases. Here the expression of Endogenous retroviruses K and W (HERVK and HERVW) was determined in blood from moderately and severely affected ME/CFS patients. HERVK was overexpressed only in moderately affected individuals and HERVW showed no difference. This is the first report about HERVK differential expression in moderate ME/CFS.