HERV Dysregulation in a Case of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis and Multiple Sclerosis Responsive to Rituximab
This article summarizes the case of 30-year-old male diagnosed with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) and its longitudinal follow-up, which provided a secondary diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) eight years later. The most impactful result was his response to rituximab t...
| Autores: | , , , , |
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| Tipo de recurso: | artículo |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2025 |
| País: | España |
| Institución: | Universidad Católica de Valencia San Vicente Mártir |
| Repositorio: | RIUCV. Repositorio de la Universidad Católica de Valencia San Vicente Mártir |
| Idioma: | inglés |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:riucv.ucv.es:20.500.12466/5769 |
| Acceso en línea: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12466/5769 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palabra clave: | Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome Multiple Sclerosis Human endogenous retrovirus Rituximab Autoimmunity Epstein-Barr Virus 32 Ciencias Médicas |
| Sumario: | This article summarizes the case of 30-year-old male diagnosed with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) and its longitudinal follow-up, which provided a secondary diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) eight years later. The most impactful result was his response to rituximab treatment after the systematic failure of prior treatments. Although the expression of endogenous retroviral proteins has been associated with autoimmunity, the patient did not show increased expression of the toxic protein HERV (human endogenous retrovirus)-W ENV, a target of the ongoing clinical trials with temelimab in MS and long COVID-19 cases. However, genome-wide HERV transcriptome analysis by high density microarrays clearly revealed a distinct profile in the patient’s blood supportive of an altered immune system. Limitations of the study include sub-optimal frequency of magnetic resonance imaging to monitor lesion progression, and similarly for reassessment of HERV profiles after rituximab. Overall, the coincidence of HERV alterations and the impactful response to rituximab presents the possibility of additional, more specific, therapeutic targets encoded by other HERV elements yet to be discovered. |
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