ArticlePloS one2017
Cellular bioenergetics is impaired in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.
Article in PloS one, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 108 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
108 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 178 citations in OpenAlex.
- Comparative effectiveness of non-pharmacological traditional Chinese medicine therapies for chronic fatigue syndrome: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Pooled it
- A systematic review of nutraceutical interventions for mitochondrial dysfunctions in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome.Journal of translational medicine · 2021Pooled it
- A systematic review of mitochondrial abnormalities in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome/systemic exertion intolerance disease.Journal of translational medicine · 2020Pooled it
- No Signs of Neuroinflammation in Women With Chronic Fatigue Syndrome or Q Fever Fatigue Syndrome Using the TSPO Ligand [Neurology(R) neuroimmunology & neuroinflammation · 2022Trial
- Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome patients exhibit altered T cell metabolism and cytokine associations.The Journal of clinical investigation · 2020Trial
- Exploratory Analysis of Associations Between Whole Blood Mitochondrial Gene Expression and Cancer-Related Fatigue Among Breast Cancer Survivors.Nursing researchTrial
- Holistic Regulation of Body-Mind Acupuncture Activates Leptin Receptor-AMPK Signaling to Restore Mitochondrial Homeostasis in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome in vitro and in vivo.Chinese journal of integrative medicine · 2026Article
- Review
- Low-Dose Ionizing Radiation and Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS): A Review of Recent Evidence and Future Research Directions Toward the Elucidation of a Metabolic, Immunologic, and Signaling Cascade.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Irisin Signaling Resistance in Myalgic Encephalomyelitis: A Proposed Mechanistic Framework for Post-Exertional Malaise Involving the TSP-1-HSP90α-αvβ5 Axis.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Human Endogenous Retroviruses in Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Emerging Roles in Pathogenesis, Immunity, Biomarkers and Therapeutics.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Plasma Extracellular Vesicle Surface Marker Profiling Reveals Immune Cell-Associated Mitochondrial Membrane Potential Alterations in Long COVID and Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.Open forum infectious diseases · 2026Article
- Pathophysiological, Translational, and Diagnostic Aspects of ME/CFS: A Focus on Skeletal Muscle Involvement.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- ATP bioenergetics and fatigue in young adults with and without major depression.Translational psychiatry · 2026Article
- An Overview of Severe Myalgic Encephalomyelitis.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Review
- Mitochondrial respiration in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of healthy adult population.PloS one · 2026Article
- Associations of physical fitness and choice reaction time with chronic fatigue in working-age adults: a population-based study.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Insights into the Complex Biological Network Underlying Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Gulf War Illness, Fibromyalgia, Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Long COVID Overlap in Common Symptoms and Underlying Biological Mechanisms: Implications for Future Therapeutic Strategies.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Creatine and post-viral fatigue syndrome: an update.Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2025Review
48 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
6 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is a highly debilitating disease of unknown aetiology. Abnormalities in bioenergetic function have been cited as one possible cause for CFS. Preliminary studies were performed to investigate cellular bioenergetic abnormalities in CFS patients. A series of assays were conducted using peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from CFS patients and healthy controls. These experiments investigated cellular patterns in oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) and glycolysis. Results showed consistently lower measures of OXPHOS parameters in PBMCs taken from CFS patients compared with healthy controls. Seven key parameters of OXPHOS were calculated: basal respiration, ATP production, proton leak, maximal respiration, reserve capacity, non-mitochondrial respiration, and coupling efficiency. While many of the parameters differed between the CFS and control cohorts, maximal respiration was determined to be the key parameter in mitochondrial function to differ between CFS and control PBMCs due to the consistency of its impairment in CFS patients found throughout the study (p≤0.003). The lower maximal respiration in CFS PBMCs suggests that when the cells experience physiological stress they are less able to elevate their respiration rate to compensate for the increase in stress and are unable to fulfil cellular energy demands. The metabolic differences discovered highlight the inability of CFS patient PBMCs to fulfil cellular energetic demands both under basal conditions and when mitochondria are stressed during periods of high metabolic demand.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.