Potential of Activin B as a Clinical Biomarker in Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS).
Gravelsina, Sabine, Nora-Krukle, Zaiga, Vilmane, Anda et al. · Biomolecules · 2021 · DOI
Quick Summary
Researchers tested whether a protein called activin B could be used as a simple blood test to diagnose ME/CFS. They compared activin B levels in 134 people with ME/CFS and 54 healthy people, but found no meaningful difference between the two groups. Based on these results, activin B does not appear to be a useful diagnostic tool for ME/CFS.
Why It Matters
ME/CFS lacks objective diagnostic tests and relies on clinical criteria, making the search for reliable biomarkers essential for earlier and more accurate diagnosis. This negative finding helps guide future biomarker research away from less promising candidates and focuses efforts on more promising molecular targets.
Observed Findings
No statistically significant difference in activin B levels between ME/CFS patients and healthy controls (p = 0.6511)
No gender-related differences in activin B levels in either the ME/CFS group or healthy controls
No age-related differences in activin B levels in either group
Weak inverse correlation between activin B levels and visual analogue pain scale scores (r = -0.2004; p = 0.5085), which did not reach statistical significance
Inferred Conclusions
Activin B does not have clinical utility as a diagnostic biomarker for ME/CFS
Activin B levels are not associated with disease severity as measured by pain scoring
Future biomarker research should focus on other candidate proteins rather than activin B
Remaining Questions
Could activin B be useful as part of a multi-biomarker panel rather than as a standalone test?
Do activin B levels vary across different ME/CFS disease subtypes or clinical phenotypes?
Would longitudinal measurements of activin B reveal changes that correlate with disease progression or treatment response?
What This Study Does Not Prove
This study does not prove that activin B plays no role in ME/CFS pathophysiology—only that blood levels do not reliably distinguish patients from healthy controls. The study's cross-sectional design cannot establish causation or whether activin B might be relevant in specific ME/CFS subtypes. The negative result does not eliminate the possibility that activin B could be useful in combination with other biomarkers.