ME/CFS and the immune system. Where are we now?Geraldine (Jo) Cambridge, PhD, Dep

RME Sverige
Published on Dec 19, 2017
Geraldine (Jo) Cambridge, PhD, Dep. Medicine, University College, London on B-cell depletion with Rituximab.

 

The presentation itself is about 26 minutes and then there is discussion.

 

Thanks for sharing this

 

It seems to have been recorded before the sad announcement about the Rituximab study

 

"We are here" (finally)

"ME/CFS is an organic disease" (@ 2:27)

Very gratifying to hear but I wonder what evidence Jo Cambridge is basing this statement on?

 

Yes, I'd like to know what her thoughts are now.

It was interesting that they did show differences between patients and HCs for some tests.
Also she mentioned collaboration with Carmen Scheibenbogen in Berlin and being excited about something she is doing.

 

My take on it (what I hope it means) is that although Ritux itself is not going to be "The Cure", the team will have made some useful discoveries along the way that could provide useful information to J Cambridge and others.

This information might provide clues as to where to look next and may provide a stepping stone for other research.

 

One of the things I was most worried about when I heard the news about the negative trial results was that we would lose our fab UCL team - Jo Cambridge and Fane Mensah (and our lovely advisor Jo Edwards) as I was under the impression the research at UCL was focused around laying the groundwork for the forthcoming (obviously not now) Rituximab UK trial.

Is it likely UCL will abandon ME research now that Rituximab treatment is shown not to work for ME or does anyone know if the UCL team is still interested in studying this disease. Also what would happen to Fane's Phd if he was studying B cells in ME but it turns out they aren't the problem - would he have to do the whole thing again? He seems like such a decent guy and it was great that we had a young researcher interested to help in our disease - if B cells haven't worked out - would he keep studying it?

 

A good question @JamBob .

Ritux aside, from Jo Cambridge's presentation I understood they have found a problem with B cells - specifically CD21 & CD24 molecules. The observations made by the UCL team may indicate some mitochondrial problem. I don't really understand the science. So, although Ritux may not be the answer, B cells may well still be part of the problem, or a symptom of the problem.

I should imagine/hope Fane Mensah's work still stands. He is adding to the overall knowledge we have of how these things work.

I seem to remember seeing somewhere that the Norwegian team have indicated that they are still interested in studying ME/CFS. We will probably have to wait until they are ready to publish to find out more.

I would love to hear @Jonathan Edwards take on where we are now and what he believes is likely to happen next.