Age-specific alterations of the gut mycobiome in patients with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome and identification of potential diagnostic biomarkers. — CFSMEATLAS
Age-specific alterations of the gut mycobiome in patients with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome and identification of potential diagnostic biomarkers.
Gan, Yunong, Ning, Ruihong, Zhang, Wen et al. · BMC microbiology · 2025 · DOI
Quick Summary
Researchers studied fungi living in the gut of ME/CFS patients compared to healthy people across different age groups. They found that people with ME/CFS have different types and amounts of gut fungi than healthy people, and these differences vary depending on age. Using these fungal patterns, they could identify ME/CFS patients with high accuracy—especially when looking at people of similar ages—suggesting gut fungi might help diagnose the condition.
Why It Matters
This study identifies fungal biomarkers that could improve ME/CFS diagnosis, particularly by demonstrating that age-specific analysis substantially enhances diagnostic accuracy. Understanding age-related differences in mycobiome dysbiosis may guide personalized diagnostic approaches and inform future research into whether correcting fungal imbalances could alleviate symptoms.
Observed Findings
ME/CFS patients showed reduced fungal richness (diversity) in young and middle-aged groups but increased diversity in elderly group compared to controls.
Age-specific fungal taxa discriminated ME/CFS from controls, with Preussia present across young and middle-aged cohorts; Chaetomium dominant in elderly cohort.
Age-stratified diagnostic models achieved 87.5–100% accuracy versus 65.2% without stratification.
Fungal genera positively associated with fatigue severity were depleted in ME/CFS, while negatively associated genera were enriched.
Principal coordinate analysis showed robust separation of ME/CFS and control groups across all age strata using Bray–Curtis and Jaccard distance metrics.
Inferred Conclusions
Gut mycobiome dysbiosis is a consistent feature of ME/CFS, but its pattern and severity vary significantly by host age.
Age-specific fungal profiles can serve as promising diagnostic biomarkers for ME/CFS when appropriately stratified.
Identified fungi function primarily as markers of disease state rather than causal agents based on depletion patterns in ME/CFS.
Remaining Questions
Do the observed fungal alterations precede ME/CFS onset, or do they develop as a consequence of disease and associated factors?
What This Study Does Not Prove
This study does not establish that altered gut fungi cause ME/CFS—the findings suggest fungi are biomarkers of disease burden rather than causative agents. The cross-sectional design cannot determine whether fungal changes precede disease onset or result from it. Additionally, findings from this population may not generalize to all ME/CFS patients, and the moderate overall accuracy without age stratification suggests fungal profiles alone are insufficient for diagnosis.