October 10, 2006

As reported in the October 2006 issue of the CFIDSLink e-News, "in mid-August, Dr. John Gow and Dr. Abhijit Chaudhuri of the University of Glasgow submitted an application to the European Patent Office describing a diagnostic tool for CFS. The "invention" (as it's termed in the application) covers "materials and methods for diagnosis and treatment of CFS," based on genetic biomarkers observed by Gow and Chaudhuri during their extensive genetic research into the illness."

It is further stated that "taken alone, the profile generated by this test may not provide an absolute diagnosis of CFS," according to the researchers. However, the profile could help confirm or rule out an initial diagnosis based solely on physical and psychological symptoms. Drs. Gow and Chaudhuri believe that CFS is "an aquired condition where there's a shift in the functionality of a select number of genes regulating specific biological activities-specifically those involved in infection and immunity, cell membrane function and cell cycle," according to the patent application reports CFIDSLink.

You can read more about the patent application and other research on the CFIDS Association web site.