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Dane Cook needs 3 more patients for his PEM study--women in Madison, WI

waiting

Senior Member
Messages
463
During the CAA webinar(just finished -- was recorded and will be posted to SolveCFS), the presenter, Dane Cook, said he needs 3 more volunteer patients to complete his clinical study.

- An Investigation of PEM in CFS
- University of Wisconsin
- requires 3 visits to campus
- blood tests, sub maximal exercise test and MRI
- $225 for time & effort
- call tel: 608-262-2457
 
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waiting

Senior Member
Messages
463
I missed the beginning of this presentation, but thought it very interesting.
Yes, I may have missed this part, but I am wondering in which ways it adds to the previous Lights' gene expression studies. Is it considered a replication study? I'm guessing not, since it includes Dr Alan Light, who authored the original gene expression study.
 

Dolphin

Senior Member
Messages
17,567
Video is up at:

During the CAA webinar(just finished -- was recorded and will be posted to SolveCFS), the presenter, Dane Cook, said he needs 3 more volunteer patients to complete his clinical study.

- An Investigation of PEM in CFS
- University of Wisconsin
- requires 3 visits to campus
- blood tests, sub maximal exercise test and MRI
- $225 for time & effort
- call tel: 608-262-2457
Healthies or people with CFS or both? I don't have time/energy to watch at the moment.
 

waiting

Senior Member
Messages
463
Video is up at:


Healthies or people with CFS or both? I don't have time/energy to watch at the moment.

I can't recall! :thumbdown: I'm assuming PWC ... or you could call the number and ask them the question if you think you'd like to volunteer.
 

Dolphin

Senior Member
Messages
17,567
I can't recall! :thumbdown: I'm assuming PWC ... or you could call the number and ask them the question if you think you'd like to volunteer.
Can't volunteer - wrong side of the Atlantic - but would like to get the message out.
 

Little Bluestem

All Good Things Must Come to an End
Messages
4,930
I’m on the right side of the Atlantic, but too far away to get to Madison 3 times for $225.

Does anyone know Mr. Cook’s view of CFS? I did a little search on him and found more references to psychology that I was comfortable with.

 

ukxmrv

Senior Member
Messages
4,413
Location
London
I'd value others opinions on this. Ran through the video yesterday but having trouble taking it all in and ran through it again today. Had to replay a few area that didn't sink it.

The study appears to be tying in the work of the Lights on gene expression after exercise. However it is going to have a very specific slant to it. They will be taking a number of different tests from patients (think lactic acid in blood and lots more) but the main thrust of it is going to be how patients perform a series of mental cognitive tests and how that ties in with the other results. More importantly it is going to concentrate on brain scans of the patients.


I'm going to have to find the paper from Jacob Meyer (sp?) in 2013 and see where that went as it was mentioned in this study.
 
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MeSci

ME/CFS since 1995; activity level 6?
Messages
8,231
Location
Cornwall, UK
Video is up at:


Healthies or people with CFS or both? I don't have time/energy to watch at the moment.

If he wants more patients I would guess that he would mean ME/CFS patients, as otherwise the illness would be specified, wouldn't it? And participants in research are called subjects rather than patients.
 

Dolphin

Senior Member
Messages
17,567
If he wants more patients I would guess that he would mean ME/CFS patients, as otherwise the illness would be specified, wouldn't it? And participants in research are called subjects rather than patients.
Yes, but the initial poster may have interpreted what he said rather than remembering it exactly (e.g. maybe "subjects" was used instead). And the "volunteer" part would be more likely to be used for healthies I would think. Also, it is often harder to get the healthy volunteers. So I don't think we can be sure.
 

ukxmrv

Senior Member
Messages
4,413
Location
London
Found it. The first 19 minutes of the Webinar were spent describing this paper (from the same stable and also commissioned by SolveME/CFS initiatve (used to be the CFIDS Association)

Abstract
Background: A primary complaint of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) patients is post-exertion malaise, which is a worsening of symptoms following activities such as exercise. Purpose: To examine the link between gene expression for metabolite, adrenergic, immune, and glucocorticoid receptors on leukocytes and symptoms (pain, fatigue, and mood) following a maximal exercise test. Methods: Thirteen CFS patients and 11 healthy participants matched on age and fitness underwent blood draws and completed questionnaires immediately before, and 15 minutes, 48 hours, and 72 hours following, maximal exercise. Symptom and genetic measures collected before and after exercise were compared using a doubly multivariate repeated-measures analysis of variance. Results: This comparison of CFS and healthy participants resulted in a significant multivariate main effect for Group (p < 0.05). Univariate analyses indicated group differences for adrenergic α-2A and glucocorticoid (NR3C1) receptor messenger ribonucleic acid and symptoms of fatigue and confusion. Changes in gene expression were significantly correlated with symptoms. Conclusions: Results suggest that increased glucocorticoid sensitivity may contribute to the symptoms of post-exertion malaise in CFS. As NR3C1 interacts with other transcription factors, investigating the resulting cascades may lead to greater understanding of the biological mechanism of post-exertion malaise. This finding, if confirmed, could lead to novel approaches to prevent symptom exacerbation in CFS.

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/21641846.2013.838444#.VCQY6vldUlI

There's a previous PR discussion of the paper here

http://forums.phoenixrising.me/inde...per-alpa-2a-glutocorticoid-implication.25711/
 
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ukxmrv

Senior Member
Messages
4,413
Location
London
My question is - after the Lights research was published on gene expression changes after exercise in CFS what did we expect to happen next?

This for the old CFIDS Association (now called Solve ME initiative) is the next "next".

The first "next" was to commission research on gene expression of some specific receptors and some PEM symptoms in patients. That research returned a relationship between some adrenergic and glucocorticoid receptors and the symptoms of fatigue and confusion after exercise they said.

Now they have commissioned the same team to look at the MRI brain activity of patients before and after exercise when they perform fatiguing cognitive tests. It's for this research volunteers are needed. They will also be doing gene expression and metabolics but I get the impression it is brain activity that is their focus.

Some comments on the Webinar (and I'll add to this)

The first part of the talk by Dane Cook explains the paper initial above (Meyer et al). That's about 19 minutes long. The "take home"message from this is that they regard the differences in gene expression of the glucocorticoid receptor to be the reason for the fatigue patients feel after exercise.

There is no mention of any immunological findings from the Lights or much about immunology.

They talk about interactions between different physiological systems but the focus appears to be on the brain. I think it is important that this is their focus and I would appreciate other's opinions on if I have got this right.

The new research project is going to be on PEM and brain function during cognitive tasks using an MRI machine. It goes something like this

They will take patients symptoms, take blood samples for gene expression, then scan their brains using MRI whilst they perform "not fatiguing" and "non fatiguing" cognitive tests like mentally adding numbers, number recognition, measure physical activity for 1 week, take blood, symptoms, exercise to 70%, take metabolics (Oxygen/lactate and others).

24 hours later = more tests

Dane talks about some data from patients already(no idea where this comes from?) This time it sounds as if they will take 10 different symptoms (not the 3 or 4 studied previously) - chills, muscle pain, concentration, fever, joint pain, headache, sore throat, fatigue, memory, lymph.

I'm still working and trying to understand the Webinar so will be adding to this and correcting. Please send me a PM if I have anything horribly wrong.


TBC
 
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Little Bluestem

All Good Things Must Come to an End
Messages
4,930
I found the notes I took on Dane Cook.

His research interests stated on his U of WI website:
Research Interest: My primary research interests are to determine the psychobiological mechanisms of pain and fatigue and to learn how exercise can be used to better understand and treat these phenomena in healthy adults and those suffering from chronic pain and fatigue.

He works in the Exercise Psychology Lab and Human Behavior and Motor Control Lab.

The term psychophysiological showed up several times.
 

Dolphin

Senior Member
Messages
17,567
Here's an image people can use to help attract volunteers:
10514696_10152312860462108_1222033888936898287_n.jpg