University Hospital Regensburg: project “Miracle” investigates the invisible burden of ME/CFS

January 22, 2025

The University Hospital Regensburg (UKR) is initiating the "Miracle" project together with the University Hospital Gießen and Marburg (UKGM) to research the mysterious disease Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS). The disease is a massive burden for those affected: extreme, permanent exhaustion, pain and physical limitations often make a normal life impossible. The three-year joint project is intended to provide new insights and is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) with a total budget of 2.5 million.
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Auto-translated from German. I added some line breaks.

What makes “Miracle” special

"Miracle" looks where others don't look - for example at the so-called neutrophil granulocytes. These essential defense cells of our immune system are the most common immunocompetent cells, but are extremely difficult to research: They cannot be cultured and must be examined immediately after removal and gentle isolation.

At the UKR, research into neutrophil granulocytes, primarily by Dr. Michael Gruber, head of the research laboratory at the Department of Anaesthesiology, already looks back on 25 years. This experience makes the UKR team led by project leader Dr. Dr. Alexander Dejaco, Clinical Scientist at the Department of Anaesthesiology, a pioneer in a difficult but highly relevant field of research.

"We want to find out whether these cells play a key role in ME/CFS," explains Dejaco. Together with the overall director of the network, Dr. med. Elisabeth Schieffer from the Clinic for Cardiology, Angiology and Internal Intensive Care Medicine at the UKGM came up with the idea for “Miracle” – an innovative project that successfully raised funding from the BMBF.

“Miracle” also reaches the seriously ill: In an unusual approach, bedridden patients are included in the study. Home visits make it possible to collect data from a patient group that is otherwise often excluded from studies.

Subject of research

"Miracle" is dedicated to the disease-related changes in cell functions and aims, among other things, to research the exact mechanisms that lead to ME/CFS and are still a mystery today. Immunological, inflammatory and metabolic processes are examined in detail. With the help of artificial intelligence (AI), the results are analyzed at the UKGM in order to better understand connections.

The aim is to identify so-called biomarkers - measurable characteristics - that make diagnosis easier and enable even more targeted treatment.

Why “Miracle” is important

ME/CFS is often diagnosed late or incorrectly. Patients often struggle for years with misdiagnoses such as burnout or depression because there are no objective tests. They often encounter a lack of understanding - even from doctors or insurance companies.

With new biomarkers, doctors could diagnose ME/CFS more easily and objectively in the future. Understanding the disease mechanisms could pave the way for specific treatments.

 

Great to hear that!