Treatment avenues in ME/CFS: A split-gender pharmacogenomic study of gene-expression modules, 2019, Jeffrey, Broderick. Klimas et al

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Source: Clinical Therapeutics

Preprint

Date: March 6, 2019

URL:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0149291819300475

Treatment avenues in Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A split-gender pharmacogenomic study of gene-expression modules
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Mary G. Jeffrey(1,2), Lubov Nathanson(1,3), Kristina Aenlle(1,3,4), Zachary M. Barnes(1,4,5,6), Mirza Baig(1), Gordon Broderick (1,2,3,7,8), Nancy G. Klimas(1,2,3), Mary Ann Fletcher(1,3,4), Travis J.A. Craddock(1,2,3,9,*)

1 Institute for Neuro-Immune Medicine, Nova Southeastern University, Ft. Lauderdale, FL, USA

2 College of Psychology, Nova Southeastern University, Ft. Lauderdale, FL, USA

3 Department of Clinical Immunology, Nova Southeastern University, Ft. Lauderdale, FL, USA

4 Miami Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Miami, FL, USA

5 Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA

6 Diabetes Research Institute, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA

7 Department of Medicine, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

8 Center for Clinical Systems Biology, Rochester General Hospital, Rochester, NY, USA

9 Department of Computer Science, Nova Southeastern University, Ft. Lauderdale, FL, USA

* Corresponding author. Institute for Neuro-Immune Medicine, Nova Southeastern University, 3301 College Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33314, USA. Email: tcraddock@nova.edu

Received 7 November 2018

Revised 9 January 2019

Accepted 18 January 2019

Available online 6 March 2019.

Abstract

Purpose

Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a debilitating multisymptom illness impacting up to 1 million people in the United States. As the pathogenesis and etiology of this complex condition are unclear, prospective treatments are limited. Identifying US Food and Drug Administration-approved drugs that may be repositioned as treatments for ME/CFS may offer a rapid and cost-effective solution.

Methods

Here we used gene-expression data from 33 patients with Fukuda-defined ME/CFS (23 females, 10 males) and 21 healthy demographically comparable controls (15 females, 6 males) to identify differential expression of predefined gene-module sets based on nonparametric statistics.

Differentially expressed gene modules were then annotated via over-representation analysis using the Consensus Pathway database.

Differentially expressed modules were then regressed onto measures of fatigue and cross-referenced with drug atlas and pharmacogenomics databases to identify putative treatment agents.

Findings

The top 1% of modules identified in males indicated small effect sizes in modules associated with immune regulation and mitochondrial dysfunction. In females, modules identified included those related to immune factors and cardiac/blood factors, returning effect sizes ranging from very small to intermediate (0.147<Cohen delta<0.532). Regression analysis indicated that B-cell receptors, T-cell receptors, tumor necrosis factor alpha, transforming growth factor beta, and metabolic and cardiac modules were strongly correlated with multiple composite measures of fatigue. Cross-referencing identified genes with pharmacogenomics data indicated immunosuppressants as potential treatments of ME/CFS symptoms.

Implications

The findings from our analysis suggest that ME/CFS symptoms are perpetuated by immune dysregulation that may be approached via immune modulation-based treatment strategies. (Clin Ther. 2019;41:XXX-XXX) (c)

2019 Elsevier Inc.
 
33 patients, Fukuda criteria, 23 female, 10 male
CONCLUSIONS
In this work, we used gene-expression data from female and male patients with ME/CFS to identify druggable targets in differentially expressed genes from predefined gene-pathway modules. Our results support the view that ME/CFS is a stress-mediated illness with underlying endocrine, immune, and mitochondrial imbalances accompanied by autonomic and physical dysfunction in both sexes. Further analysis in the female cohort indicated that dysregulation of endocrine, immune, and metabolic function correlates strongly with ME/CFS symptomatology, and supports treatment strategies that would target both immune and endocrine hormone-signaling pathways.

These targetable pathways, especially TGF-b, pinpoint the immunologic dysfunction underlying ME/CFS presentation, and may also serve as potential biomarkers for this illness, as it has been shown to be consistently elevated across ME/CFS literature.7 Interestingly, the findings from this study also align with those from our previous investigation of altered neuroendocrine-immune homeostasis in ME/CFS using computational models of known immune,stress, and sex hormone signaling,69and support the use of Th2 immunosuppressive agents targeting IL-4 and inhibition of glucocorticoid receptors, either individually or in conjunction.

However, there were limitations in this study. The male sample was small, limiting the power to find statistical significance.Therefore, effect sizes were computed to investigate significance outside of statistical power. In addition,this study did not have additional cohorts useful for increasing statistical meaning such as another control with similar immunologic symptoms (eg, Gulf War illness or fibromyalgia). However, controls were matched demographically to both female and male CFS participants. There is an increased risk for false discovery from the greater number of computerized comparisons. The study utilized compensatory measures such as the false-discovery rate and effect sizes to account for findings significant solely by chance.

Finally, this article cannot recommend or assess the utility of any drugs that target identified genes. Therefore, future research on the efficacy of these putative treatment strategies are warranted and may lead to a more complete understanding of the specific biological process underlying ME/CFS symptomology. In conclusion, this study supports established literature pointing toward immunologic dysfunction, especially in TNF-a, while identifying potential targets for known pharmaceuticals to inform further research.
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