The extent of the vision and investment into ME/CFS research in the Netherlands is continuing apace. The funding of two consortia – ME/CFS Lines and the Dutch ME/CFS Cohort and Biobank consortium (NMCB) and a number of sub-projects has already been made but on 29th August 2025 ZonMw announced funding for a further 7 studies.
ZonMw is an independent self-governing organisation which programmes and funds research, encourages impact, and defines areas where knowledge is needed in the Netherlands. The formation of consortia and studies is made possible due to a 28.5 million euros 10-year programme which was announced in April 2023 in pursuance of the Dutch Minister of Medical Care and Sport, Tamara van Ark’s, 2021 direction to ZonMw to carry out a biomedical research programme on ME/CFS.
The Studies –
- Single-cell transcriptomics of multiple brain regions in ME/CFS (part of the NMCB consortium)
The project aims to get a more complete picture of the molecular and cellular changes in ME/CFS. The researchers are looking at multiple brain regions that may be affected in ME/CFS and linking them to molecular changes in specific cell types. They also want to investigate immune changes in the central nervous system and periphery. In this way, the researchers hope to find new targets that can serve as biomarkers or for developing new treatments for people with ME/CFS. - Bioactive peptides in ME/CFS: the link between inflammation and neurological abnormalities (part of the NMCB consortium)
The aim of this project is to better understand ME/CFS by looking at certain proteins in the body, such as bioactive peptides and the enzyme neprilysin (also called CD10). These are substances in the body that can play a role in the disease process. An innovative technology called Point-of-Care (PoC) is used. This technology makes it possible to carry out examinations at the patients’ homes. This is unique worldwide and makes participation possible for the seriously ill ME/CFS patients. The researchers hope to use this approach to find objective disease markers that can improve both diagnosis and treatment. - How metabolism and brain interact: to a better understanding of cognitive symptoms in ME/CFS (part of the NMCB consortium)
This project aims to better understand how changes in the energy management and immune system of ME/CFS patients are related to the brain. And with problems in attention, remembering, concentration time and speed of thinking. The project provides new insights, which can be used to improve the way in which problems with thinking ability can be measured. This also provides insights for new treatments. - Testing of personalised interventions aimed at restoring the intestinal flora in ME/CFS (collaboration between the ME/CFS Lines and NMCB consortia)
The aim of this project is to investigate the composition of the intestinal flora. In addition, various interventions outside the body are investigated with a laboratory model aimed at restoring the intestinal flora. The researchers hope to answer the following questions:- What types of laboratory models can we develop to study the gut microbiota of ME/CFS patients outside the body?
- What happens in these laboratory models when we make interventions to restore the gut flora?
- What substances (metabolites) are produced by the bacteria in the gut of people with ME/CFS, both in the lab and during treatment?
- How do the substances (metabolites) affect the barrier of the intestinal wall in a laboratory model?
- How can the clinical data be linked to the data from the laboratory data, so that the right intervention can be developed for each group of patients to restore the intestinal flora?
- Research into the composition of the intestinal flora and testing of interventions aimed at restoring the intestinal flora.
- Linking exercise impairment phenotypes to muscle abnormalities in ME/CFS (part of the NMCB consortium)
This project aims to better understand the underlying causes of exercise limitations and PEM in ME/CFS. In addition, research is being done into reliable and patient-friendly methods (non-invasive and MRIs) to investigate the functioning of the muscles. - Virus infection and reactivation and gastrointestinal microbiome in ME/CFS (collaboration between the ME/CFS Lines and NMCB consortia)
This project aims to:- Activity of viruses such as B19, EBV, HCMV, HHV-6, HHV-7, and the body’s own remnants of ancestral retroviral infections (infections from the generations caused by certain viruses) in ME/CFS patients and healthy individuals.
- To determine the composition of the microbiome (bacteria and viruses) in the stool of ME/CFS patients and healthy individuals.
- Measure the gut barrier in ME/CFS patients and healthy individuals.
- Investigate the relationship between gut barrier, gut microbiome and viral activity.
- Investigate how the gut microbiome of ME/CFS patients affects the gut barrier and inflammatory responses in a laboratory model.
- Phenotypes of orthostatic intolerance (OI) and regulation of cerebral perfusion in ME/CFS (part of the NMCB consortium)
The aim of this project is to improve diagnostic accuracy and knowledge about OI in ME/CFS:- Study 1 focuses on mapping the different forms of OI in ME/CFS. To this end, an extensive analysis of physical (physiological), noticeable (symptomatic) and daily (functional) data from the Dutch ME/CFS Cohort and Biobank (NMCB) will be performed. The aim is to divide the different forms of OI into categories and thus to better understand diagnostics and disease progression.
- Study 2 uses advanced MRI techniques to investigate how reduced blood flow to the brain explains OI.
