ArticleBrain sciences2022
Differential Effects of Exercise on fMRI of the Midbrain Ascending Arousal Network Nuclei in Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) and Gulf War Illness (GWI) in a Model of Postexertional Malaise (PEM).
Article in Brain sciences, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers.
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Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed, 20 citations in OpenAlex.
- Neurovascular and synaptic milieu of brain-resident cells in cognitive dysfunction of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome.Journal of translational medicine · 2026Review
- Difference of Resting State Functional Connectivity between Depressive Patients with and without Clinically Significant Insomnia.Clinical psychopharmacology and neuroscience : the official scientific journal of the Korean College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2025Article
- Cognitive Dysfunction in Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome-Aetiology and Potential Treatments.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Fatigue, interoplastic and nociplastic distress in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome, Gulf War Illness, and chronic idiopathic fatigue.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2025Article
- Effectiveness of Exercise-Based Rehabilitation in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.International journal of exercise science · 2025Review
- Pathology of pain and its implications for therapeutic interventions.Signal transduction and targeted therapy · 2024Review
- Cerebral microstructural alterations in Post-COVID-condition are related to cognitive impairment, olfactory dysfunction and fatigue.Nature communications · 2024Article
- [Systems thinking, subjective findings and diagnostic "pigeonholing" in ME/CFS: A mainly qualitative public health study from a patient perspective].Deutsche medizinische Wochenschrift (1946) · 2024Article
- Central 5-HTergic hyperactivity induces myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS)-like pathophysiology.Journal of translational medicine · 2024Article
- Altered brain connectivity in Long Covid during cognitive exertion: a pilot study.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2023Article
- The Pathobiology of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: The Case for Neuroglial Failure.Frontiers in cellular neuroscience · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundMyalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS), Gulf War Illness (GWI) and control subjects underwent fMRI during difficult cognitive tests performed before and after submaximal exercise provocation (Washington 2020). Exercise caused increased activation in ME/CFS but decreased activation for GWI in the dorsal midbrain, left Rolandic operculum and right middle insula. Midbrain and isthmus nuclei participate in threat assessment, attention, cognition, mood, pain, sleep, and autonomic dysfunction.
methodsActivated midbrain nuclei were inferred by a re-analysis of data from 31 control, 36 ME/CFS and 78 GWI subjects using a seed region approach and the Harvard Ascending Arousal Network.
resultsBefore exercise, control and GWI subjects showed greater activation during cognition than ME/CFS in the left pedunculotegmental nucleus. Post exercise, ME/CFS subjects showed greater activation than GWI ones for midline periaqueductal gray, dorsal and median raphe, and right midbrain reticular formation, parabrachial complex and locus coeruleus. The change between days (delta) was positive for ME/CFS but negative for GWI, indicating reciprocal patterns of activation. The controls had no changes.
conclusionsExercise caused the opposite effects with increased activation in ME/CFS but decreased activation in GWI, indicating different pathophysiological responses to exertion and mechanisms of disease. Midbrain and isthmus nuclei contribute to postexertional malaise in ME/CFS and GWI.
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