The nanoneedle salt stress test – too good a clue to leave abandoned on the lab bench?

"The ME Association and ME Research UK announce funding for a study that aims to create a diagnostic test for ME/CFS"
https://meassociation.org.uk/2023/1...-aims-to-create-a-diagnostic-test-for-me-cfs/

 

" May offer a therapeutic route ". Dr Fatima Labeed.

https://meassociation.org.uk/2023/1...-aims-to-create-a-diagnostic-test-for-me-cfs/


edit: the statements below all come from the MEA statement link above

“Both our group and the Davis group have identified electrical variations in ME/CFS cells compared to healthy controls. This is itself highly significant, representing a clear marker of pathology.

“However, we need to probe further to identify exactly what these changes are, and what has caused them. This will shed light on the aetiology of ME/CFS, but more importantly will provide a new tool for those studying the cell from a molecular perspective.

“If we know that cell function – for example, inhibition of a specific kind of ion channel – is responsible for the disease, others can then work to address this, which may offer a therapeutic route for researchers in the field.”

Dr Fatima Labeed.

 

More from the MEA

Added: note that both groups (biomedical engineering at Sarah University, and Cure ME) have previously found differences in the electrical properties of blood between people with ME. and healthy controls/those with MS. Presumably, this is unpublished data.



They [Esfandyarpour et al] felt their findings could represent a diagnostic marker, but since then, there hasn’t been any further research in this area. The ME Association and ME Research UK have jointly funded a new 12-month study that will build upon these initial findings.

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This is all very encouraging. No clues as to what the "more robust" approach is, but the key thing is that they are focusing on the biology, as well as the possibility of a diagnostic test (and using disease controls).

Perhaps even more spectacular are reports that electrical differences are measurable in blood between those with ME and those without - though we have no details about these studies.

 

In this example, are they speculating ME/CFS could be a channelopathy? I do realize it's just an example. but the emphasis on electrical variations could be consistent with a channelopathy, in theory.

If so, it would be an acquired channelopathy. Well, at least in part.

 

Yes. Extraordinary implications for a significant portion of "healthy individuals." Potentially.

 

Article on Health Rising - don't know if there's further/new data --- hoping you guys will analyse!
EDIT - OK skimmed the article & here's an extract:
"UK researchers reported they have already replicated the 2019 results and have done so not just with ME/CFS patients and healthy controls but with multiple sclerosis patients as well. Calling the findings “highly significant”, the UK researchers stated they presented “a clear marker of pathology“."

The Nanoneedle for ME/CFS is Back!
https://www.healthrising.org/blog/2024/02/11/nanoneedle-chronic-fatigue-me-cfs/

 

Some extracts from https://www.healthrising.org/blog/2024/02/11/nanoneedle-chronic-fatigue-me-cfs/ covering the history of the nanoneedle .


1.“We posit that this assay can potentially offer an outstanding biomarker to rapidly and inexpensively diagnose ME/CFS with high accuracy. In addition, this assay may offer a remarkable opportunity for the discovery of new treatments for this debilitating disease.” Esfandyarpour and Davis 2019, published in PNAS.


2.“"In @stanfordmed study, researchers developed new blood-based test that positively identified participants w/#MECFS. If findings can be validated in larger study, it may provide a diagnostic tool for clinicians & a target for new ME/CFS Txs. #NIH-funded https://stan.md/2IU7nYN“ Francis Collins "

(this statement claiming NIH credit caused a lot of anger when they pulled further funding for more work on this from the Davis Lab)

3. "The research grant* has been awarded to Dr Fatima Labeed and Professor Michael Hughes from the Centre for Biomedical Engineering at the University of Surrey, and Dr Eliana Lacerda and Caroline Kingdon, from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the UK ME/CFS Biobank."

* from ME Research UK and ME Association ( see post #64 Simon_M)

The grant goes to a mixture of seasoned ME/CFS experts and researchers new to the field. While Lacerda co-founded the CureME team with Caroline Kingdon, and co-created the UK ME/CFS Biobank (UKMEB), Dr. Robert Dorey is a nanomaterials expert who has not participated in ME/CFS research before.

4. "...the brief grant description indicates the team has already made significant steps forward. Using “a more robust approach”, the UK researchers report they have already replicated the 2019 results and have done so not just with ME/CFS patients and healthy controls but with multiple sclerosis patients as well. Calling the findings “highly significant”, the UK researchers stated they presented “a clear marker of pathology“."



More from Google about Dr Robert Dorey, the nano materials expert who is new to ME/CFS research.
"About
Professor Robert Dorey holds the Chair in Nanomaterials at the University of Surrey and leads a research group exploring the synthesis, processing and application of inorganic nanomaterials for novel micro and nano solutions for the energy and environment sectors.

The activity forms the core research of the SPARKLab (Sustainable Print Applied Research Knowledge Lab) at the University of Surrey "-

edit: format changes

 

I think this is good news. I was very annoyed when I heard that nanoneedle wasn't going anywhere because of funding. Now let's see if this is for real.

 

Some more background from the comment section of the above article:

 

It's good they were able to use an MS control group.

https://www.meresearch.org.uk/me-re...-aims-to-create-a-diagnostic-test-for-me-cfs/

 

In those quoted comments Whitney pins all the blame on the NIH but doesn't explain why further funding from the OMF wasn't forthcoming - perhaps he will in his blog.

 

https://news.uci.edu/2023/10/19/rahim-esfandyar-pour-wins-darpa-young-faculty-award/

Adding this as Whitney’s post about Rahim was concerning.

 

He also published multiple papers in the later half of last year https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Rahim-Esfandyarpour/research.

If I recall correctly @butter. had some knowledge on the nanoneedle for example not being able to differentiate between ME and MS.

 

Would be good to know more about this. The blurb from ME Research UK implies that they were able to detect a difference between ME and MS, though I should add that a statistically significant difference between groups does not necessarily mean the test can differentiate in a clinically useful manner.

 

Since none of this is actually "news" the most likely scenario is that Davis' team would have long since somehow collaborated or shared their knowledge/data/findings with the team in the UK, especially concerning difficulties they encountered and negative results or there were reasons for this not to be the case.

 

Isn’t it explained by the fact that Rahim specifically needed NIH funding and Davis wouldn’t compete with a student? Unless you know that they did apply earlier and OMF refused?