For the next interview in our Spotlight series, I was able to take advantage of the opportunity to speak with a few members of the Data Management Coordinating Center (DMCC) for the ME/CFS project, who work at RTI International, during a recent site visit we had here at JAX. Linda Brown, PhD, the new Principle Investigator (PI) for the project, is an epidemiologist who has many years of experience working with NIH. Becky McNeil, PhD is a research statistician, and Matt Schu, PhD specializes in bioinformatics and data integration. Keep reading to learn more about their backgrounds, how RTI became involved in ME/CFS research, and the DMCC’s plans for integrating data and driving collaboration between the three centers. 

Continue reading “Collaborator Spotlight: Members of RTI International” →

Jackson Labs ME/CFS Collaborative Center Director Derya Unutmaz and his collaborator and microbiome expert Julia Oh recently published a study in the journal Mucosal Immunology, titled “Tuning of human MAIT cell activation by commensal bacteria species and MR1-dependent T-cell presentation.” Mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT) cells are a type of T cell present in various sites of the body, including the gut mucosa, and defend against microbial infection by recognizing a particular bacterial metabolite shown to them by antigen presenting cells (APCs). In the gut microbiota, there are many different species of bacteria present and yet, MAIT cells don’t mount an immune response to all of them. It is therefore likely that these cells can distinguish which types of bacteria are beneficial to us and which are harmful. The findings from this study could be highly relevant for ME/CFS patients, who are thought to have disruptions of both their immune system and their microbiome. 

Continue reading “A novel study from Jax ME/CFS Center on a human T cell subset involved in sensing the microbiome” →

The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) has recently created a new National Advisory Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NANDS) Council Working Group for ME/CFS Research. Implemented in the summer of 2018, the group is composed of clinicians, scientists, advocates, and individuals with ME/CFS, and has the purpose of providing scientific guidance on how best to advance research in ME/CFS at NIH. The group has been charged with assessing the current NIH ME/CFS research activities, including identifying opportunities and gaps in research, finding opportunities to train young investigators and attract new investigators to the field, and identifying effective structures for collaboration and communication between researchers, patients, advocacy organizations, and federal organizations.

The Council members include Chair Steven Roberds, Ph.D., Armin Alaedini, Ph.D., Lucinda Bateman, M.D., Jennifer Brea, Dane Cook, Ph.D., Carol Head, Anthony Komaroff, M.D., Amrit Shahzad, MBBS, MBA, and Steven Schutzer, M.D. The Working Group provides a great opportunity for scientists, clinicians, advocates, and patients to work together to guide research initiatives at NIH.

To learn more about the NANDS Council Working Group for ME/CFS Research, click here.