Trial Report Heat treatment in health and disease: How water-filtered infrared-A (wIRA irradiation affects key cellular mechanisms in ME/CFS, 2024, Hochecker

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0306456524000317

Journal of Thermal Biology
Available online 21 February 2024, 103813
In Press, Journal Pre-proof


Heat treatment in health and disease: How water-filtered infrared-A (wIRA irradiation affects key cellular mechanisms in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS patients compared to healthy donors

Hochecker Barbara, Molinski Noah, Matt Katja, Meßmer Alica, Scherer Melanie, von Ardenne Alexander, Bergemann Jörg
a
Department of Life Sciences, Albstadt-Sigmaringen University of Applied Sciences, Sigmaringen, Germany
b
Von Ardenne Institute of Applied Medical Research GmbH, Dresden, Germany
Received 25 April 2023, Revised 22 December 2023, Accepted 14 February 2024, Available online 21 February 2024.


https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtherbio.2024.103813Get rights and content

Highlights

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  Autophagy is induced by wIRA treatment in healthy human fibroblasts.
  
  
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  Heat treatment leads to higher autophagy in healthy donors and ME/CFS patients.
  
  
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  Hyperthermia compensates for higher mitochondrial function in ME/CFS patients to the healthy level.
  
  
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  mRNA levels of MAP1LC3, SIRT1 and HSPA5 were significantly enhanced by wIRA irradiation.

Abstract

Heat treatment or hyperthermia is a promising therapy for many diseases, especially cancer, and can be traced back thousands of years.

Despite its long history, little is known about the cellular and molecular effects of heat on human cells.

Therefore, we investigated the impact of water-filtered infrared-A (wIRA) irradiation (39 °C, 60 min) on key cellular mechanisms, namely autophagy, mitochondrial function and mRNA expression, in human fibroblasts and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from healthy donors and myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) patients.

Our results show an induction of autophagy in healthy fibroblasts and PBMCs from healthy donors and ME/CFS patients.

ME/CFS patients have higher mitochondrial function compared to healthy donors.

The wIRA treatment leads to a slight reduction in mitochondrial function in PBMCs from ME/CFS patients, thereby approaching the level of mitochondrial function of healthy donors.

Furthermore, an activation of the mRNA expression of the autophagy-related genes MAP1LC3B and SIRT1 as well as for HSPA1, which codes for a heat shock protein, can be observed.

These results confirm an impact of heat treatment in human cells on key cellular mechanisms, namely autophagy and mitochondrial function, in health and disease, and provide hope for a potential treatment option for ME/CFS patients.

 

Just skimming before dinner.

Their evaluation of fibroblasts and PBMCs at rest (before irradiation) replicates some of the initial findings in An Isolated Complex V Inefficiency and Dysregulated Mitochondrial Function in Immortalized Lymphocytes from ME/CFS Patients (2020, International Journal of Molecular Sciences)

They show increased max OCR and spare reserve capacity in mitochondria.

Also finds increased autophagy, and the refer to Elevated ATG13 in serum of patients with ME/CFS stimulates oxidative stress response in microglial cells via activation of receptor for advanced glycation end products RAGE (2022, Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience)

 

I've read this paper through now and it's quite interesting. While they don't reference it, their baseline findings replicate the findings linked above. @DMissa if you haven't already seen it, this may be of interest. Highlighting from their discussion —

Which I think corresponds to the more detailed findings in An Isolated Complex V Inefficiency and Dysregulated Mitochondrial Function in Immortalized Lymphocytes from ME/CFS Patients (2020, International Journal of Molecular Sciences), which said —

 

In methods they say —

So the mitochondrial studies were after 60 minutes for heated and controls, not overnight which might see them dying off as discussed in Missailidis et al.

I doubt this could be relevant to any meaningful practical therapies, but if this finding were unique to ME/CFS (and not seen in eg MS), then maybe it could form a clinical test??

 

Interesting to see this study.

I've used the Iratherm bed at the Breakspear. After my first session I felt like the relaxed, pleasant feeling that i used to get pre illness after completing some hard physical exercise. It was a really good feeling.

I suspect this may well help pwME; however, patients need to be well enough to be able to do this therapy. I suspect it's not for the severely affected. It might be more doable for patients when we have other treatments and this might be supportive. Helped to get me back into exercising.