Prof. Janet Taylor and Dr Chris Latella at Edith Cowan University have been investigating the source of muscle weakness in people with ME/CFS, as part of an ME Research-funded study. They presented some of their initial findings at the Australasian Neuroscience Society annual meeting last December.
The researchers measured the activity of nerves supplying the foot muscles during ankle contractions, and found that this nerve activity was 25% lower in people with ME/CFS than in healthy controls. These results suggest that impaired motoneuron behaviour could contribute to muscle weakness in ME/CFS, and the team now plans to explore the mechanisms causing this.
