Invest in ME Research Biomedical Research Colloquiums
The Invest in ME Research
Biomedical Research into ME (BRMEC) Colloquiums are closed research meetings organised by the charity to encourage
biomedical research into ME and international collaboration amongst researchers.
This has been one of the main objectives of the charity.
Invest in ME Research began arranging public biomedical research conferences in 2006 and have continued them ever since - mostly funded by the charity but with help from some wonderful supporters and some good friends.
The Invest in ME Research International Biomedical Research into ME Colloquiums began in 2011 as a way of bringing together
researchers from around the world in a
round-table discussion of ME research and ideas.
Over the years this has broadened into sharing of experiences, data and plans for future research and international
collaboration.
A culmination of much of this effort was the
initiation of The European ME Research Group (EMERG) concept
which formed in October 2015 in London in an attempt to set up a strategy
of European collaboration in ME research.
This builds the basis for creating a strategy of high-quality international biomedical research - something which had
been lacking in the past decades.
This will hold great promise of finding funding opportunities and raising awareness of biomedical research into ME.
Our aim with the annual CPD-accredited research colloquiums has also been to introduce new researchers into the field of ME research, to gain new insights into the disease and enhance the strategy of research we are building.
In 2018 we added the initiative to begin developing foundations for the future by arranging our Thinking the Future workshops to create a network of young and early career researchers interested in or already performing biomedical research into ME.
The Invest in ME Research Colloquiums have spawned a number of positive initiatives over the years and are the most successful research meetings for forming new research initiatives for ME with multiple collaborative initiatives being formed across continents.
Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 11 - 18th - 19th May 2022
BRMEC11
Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 10 - 2nd - 3rd June 2021
BRMEC10
IIMER BRMEC10 Research Meeting London, 2021
2 - 3 June 2021
The Invest in ME Research Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 10 (BRMEC10) took place in London over two days.
Due to the pandemic this Colloquium was conducted using Zoom.
The European ME Research Group (EMERG) was tasked with producing an agenda appropriate for this environment and in order
to move things on with research into ME while the pandemic limited in-person meetings.
We again had representation from National Institutes of Health (NIH), Centers for Disease Control (CDC), USA, Canada, Europe and Australasia
Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 9 - 29th - 30th May 2019
BRMEC9
IIMER BRMEC9 Research Meeting London, 2019
29 - 30 May 2019
The Invest in ME Research Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 9 (BRMEC9) took place in London over two days and was the ninth Colloquium arranged by the charity.
We had representation from National Institutes of Health (NIH), Centers for Disease Control (CDC), USA, Canada, Europe and Australasia

"Delegates from fifteen countries attended"
BRMEC9 AGENDA
Click below to expand and show each day of the Colloquium
BRMEC9 Colloquium Agenda - Day 1
Session | Presenter(s) | ||||
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Arrival Refreshments | |||||
Welcome to the BRMEC9 |
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Clinical Research/ Clinical Trials/Treatment Experiences | |||||
Impact of Co-morbid Conditions on ME/CFS: Information from complementary data sources |
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NIH Strategy Update |
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Harvard Plans for Clinical Research for ME |
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Clinical Collaboration in Europe – A Bridge to Research |
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Catecholamine Replacement Therapy (CRT) in ME |
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Cyclophosphamide intervention in ME/CFS and associations to molecular markers |
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HLA associations in ME |
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Epstein-Barr virus induced ME/CFS |
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Chaired Discussion - Clinical Research/ Clinical Trials/Treatment Experiences | |||||
Systems Biology | |||||
Establishing new mechanistic and diagnostic paradigms for ME/CFS |
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Severely Ill Patient Study of ME/CFS |
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Identifying Genetic Predisposition, and Genomic Dysfunction of Immune system, Hormone and Metabolic Regulation in ME/CFS for Improved Diagnostics and Treatment Avenues |
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The systems-level immunology of ME/CFS, and activation of the inflammatory reflex |
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Sex-specific differences in miRNA expression in ME/CFS |
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Chaired Discussion | |||||
Metabolomics | |||||
Immunocellular bioenergetics in Danish females with ME |
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Targeted metabolic profiling and associations to clinical data in ME |
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Untargeted metabolic profiling and associations to clinical data in ME |
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Longitudinal Metabolomics Research into ME/CFS (tbc) |
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Chaired Discussion - Metabolomics |
BRMEC9 Colloquium Agenda - Day 2
Session | Presenter(s) | ||||
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Arrival Refreshments | |||||
Welcome to Day 2 BRMEC9 |
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Microbiome/Virome | |||||
Are bacteria good for your brain? Communication between the gut microbiota and the blood-brain barrier”? The influence of the gut microbiota upon the brain’s defences and the implications for cognition |
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Virome and gut microbiota research at QIB |
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Microbiome-host communication in ME/CFS |
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Chaired Discussion - Microbiome | |||||
Pathophysiology: | |||||
Transient receptor potential ion channels in the aetiology and pathomechanism of CFS/ME’ |
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Pathophysiological basis of Fibromyalgia |
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Characteristics and pathophysiological changes in a large cohort of Danish ME-patients |
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Chaired Discussion - Pathophysiology: | |||||
Neuroscience/Neuroimaging | |||||
Ongoing study of physiological and fMRI measures before and after symptom provocation by invasive cardiopulmonary exercise testing |
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PEM in fMRI-Exercise paradigm |
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Chaired Discussion - Neuroscience | |||||
Biomarkers | |||||
Preliminary Data Coming from SNP study |
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Extracellular Vesicles in ME/CFS |
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Proteomics and autoantibodies |
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Oxidative stress hypothesis for reprogramming PBMC to iPSCs then to Neurons in ME/CFS patients |
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Transposable element activation links to ME/CFS |
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Chaired Discussion - Biomarkers | |||||
Group Discussion of Issues led by European ME Clinicians Council |
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BRMEC9 Summary |
Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 8 - 30th - 31st May 2018
BRMEC8
IIMER BRMEC8 Research Meeting London, 2018
30 - 31st May 2018
The Invest in ME Research Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 8 (BRMEC8) took place in London over two days from 30th - 31st May 2018.
The eighth Colloquium aimed to increase international collaboration in research into ME.
There was representation from most of the main biomedical research initiatives occurring throughout the world and also participation fron USA's Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and National Institutes of Health (NIH).
The research Colloquium in London will precede the IIMEC13 annual public international biomedical research conference on 1st June 2018.

"Coming together is a beginning;
keeping together is progress;
working together is success."
BRMEC8 AGENDA
Click below to expand and show each day of the Colloquium
Agenda for BRMEC8 - Day 1
The agenda for the Day 1 programme on 30th May 2018
Event | Presenter(s) | ||||
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08:30 | Arrival Refreshments | ||||
Welcome to the 8th Invest in ME International Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium | Dr Ian Gibson, UEA, UK | ||||
Clinical Research | |||||
CDC Multisite study and future plans | Dr Elizabeth R. Unger, CDC, USA | ||||
NIH Common Data Elements | Dr Vicky Whittemore, NIH, USA | ||||
Challenges in study design and identification of patients with post-infectious ME | Dr Avindra Nath, NIH, USA | ||||
From phenotype to endotype: empirical and data-driven approaches for parsing clinical heterogeneity of ME using immune signatures, proteomics and metabolomics | Associate Professor Mady Hornig, Columbia University, USA | ||||
Chaired Discussion - Clinical Research | Professor Angela Vincent, University of Oxford, UK | ||||
Clinical Trials | |||||
Clinical trial Results: Rituximab | Dr Øystein Fluge, Bergen, Norway | ||||
Neuronal antibodies in Norwegian ME cohort | Angela Vincent, Oxford University, UK | ||||
Clinical trial Results: CycloME | Dr Ingrid G. Rekeland, Bergen, Norway | ||||
Chaired Discussion - Clinical Trials and Research | Amolak Bansal, Epsom and St.Helier NHS Trust, UK | ||||
Microbiome | |||||
Double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical Trial: faecal microbiota transplantation | Dr Rasmus Gol /Dr Peter Johnsen, Universit of Tromso, Norway | ||||
Virome and gut microbiota research at QIB | Fiona Newberry/Katharine Seton, Quadram Institute Bioscience, UK | ||||
Chaired Discussion - Microbiome | Professor Maureen Hanson, Cornell University, USA | ||||
Purinergic Signalling / Metabolomics | |||||
Extracellular ATP and its role as a neurotransmitter and in regulating inflammatory responses | Dr Samuel Fountain, UEA, UK | ||||
Biobank Metabolomics Data | Dr Øystein Fluge, Bergen, Norway | ||||
How UK Biobank can facilitate research into ME | Naomi Allen, UK Biobank / University of Oxford, UK | ||||
Cellular energetics | Professor Karl Johan Tronstad, Bergen, Norway | ||||
Metabolism in ME/CFS | Professor Maureen Hanson, Cornell University, USA | ||||
Stanford Metabolomics/ME Update | Professor Ron Davis, Stanford, USA | ||||
How important are the associated metabolic changes in ME/CFS in driving the illness? | Dr Karl Morten, University of Oxford, UK | ||||
Chaired Discussion - Purinergic Signalling / Metabolomics | Professor Jonas Bergquist, Uppsala, Sweden |
#BRMEC8 Day 1 is followed by a researchers' dinner organised by IiMER where more discussions are able to be carried out between researchers.
Agenda for BRMEC8 - Day 2
The agenda for the Day 2 programme on 31st May 2018
Event | Presenter(s) | ||||
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08:30 | Arrival Refreshments | ||||
Welcome to the 8th Invest in ME International Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium | Dr Ian Gibson, UEA, UK | ||||
Virology | |||||
The role of enteroviruses in T1 diabetes | Professor Heikki Hyöty, University of Tampere, Finland | ||||
HPV and autoimmunity | Dr Jesper Mehlsen, Copenhagen, Denmark | ||||
Chaired Discussion - Virology | Professor Tom Wileman, University of East Anglia, UK | ||||
Immunology | |||||
Mast cells and ME | Professor Theoharis Theoharides, Tufts University, USA | ||||
T cell homeostasis | Dr Ben Seddon, UCL, London, UK | ||||
Oxidative stress hypothesis for reprogramming PBMC to iPSCs then to Neurons in ME/CFS patients | Malav Trivedi, Nova Southeastern University, USA | ||||
Chaired Discussion - Immunology | Anne Cooke, University of Cambridge, UK | ||||
Systems Biology | |||||
Integrated systems biology to understand the role of the gut microbiome in health and disease | Lesley Hoyles, Imperial College London, UK | ||||
Using machine learning to objectively define ME/CFS subtypes | Travis Craddock, Nova Southeastern University, USA | ||||
Chaired Discussion - Systems Biology | Professor Jonas Bergquist, University of Uppsala, Sweden | ||||
ANS | |||||
Observations in Paediatric ME | Professor Kristian Sommerfelt, Bergen, Norway | ||||
Relationship between sleep quality and functioning of the autonomic nervous system in ME/CFS | Markku Partinen, University of Helsinki, Finland | ||||
Chaired Discussion - ANS | Amolak Bansal, Epsom and St.Helier NHS Trust, UK | ||||
Biomarkers | |||||
Emerging TRP pathology: the way forward in pharmacotherapeutics and treatment | Don Staines, NCNED, Australia | ||||
Immunogenetic studies in ME | Asgeir Lande, Oslo, Norway | ||||
Proteomics, steroids and autoantibodies | Jonas Bergquist, Uppsala, Sweden | ||||
Dolorimetry, cerebrospinal fluid miRNA, proteomics, metabolomics data | James Baraniuk, Georgetown University, USA | ||||
Analysis of miRNA comparing PBMCs and exosomes profiles | Elisa Oltra, Universidad Católica de Valencia “San Vicente Mártir”, Spain | ||||
Chaired Discussion - Biomarkers | Professor Jonas Bergquist, Uppsala, Sweden | ||||
Summary | Professor Jonas Blomberg, Uppsala, Sweden |
#BRMEC8 Day 2 is followed by the #IIMEC13 International ME Conference 2018 Pre-Conference Dinner
Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 7 - 31st May - 1st June 2017
BRMEC7
IIMER BRMEC7 Research Meeting London, 2017
31st May - 1st June 2017
The Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 7 (BRMEC7) took place in London over two days from 31st - 1nd June 2017.
This was the seventh Invest in ME Research Colloquium and the objective was to increase international collaboration in research into ME.
Chairing and participating in the meeting were members of the Invest in ME Research Advisory Board and the newly formed European ME Research Group (EMERG).
We had representation from most of the main biomedical research initiatives occurring throughout the world as well asparticipation from the USA by the CDC and NIH.
The research Colloquium in London preceded the IIMEC12 international biomedical research conference on 2nd June 2017.

BRMEC7 AGENDA
Click below to expand and show each day of the Colloquium
BRMEC7 - Day 1 | ||||
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Welcome to the 7th Invest in ME Research International Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 7 2017 | Dr Ian Gibson, UEA, UK | |||
NIH Research into ME - Status Update and Plans | Dr Vicky Whittemore, NIH, USA | |||
CDC Multisite study and future plans | Dr. Elizabeth Unger, CDC, USA | |||
Data Collection (including the following) | ||||
Modelling | Professor Nancy Klimas, Fort Lauderdale, USA | |||
Long-term follow up: Experience and lessons for ME from Norfolk Arthritis Registry Project (NOAR) | Professor Alex MacGregor, Norwich, UK | |||
Discussion | ||||
Immunology (including the following) | ||||
Dysregulation of Transient Receptor Potential (TRP) ion channels and calcium in natural killer cells in CFS/ME patients’ |
Professor Sonya Marshall-Gradisnik, NCNED, Australia
Professor Don Staines, NCNED, Australia |
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Update on B-cell research and future plans at UCL |
Dr Jo Cambridge, London, UK
Fane Mensah, London, UK |
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Studies of NK cells and cytotoxic T-cells in ME-patients from one Swedish and one Norwegian cohort | Dr Jakob Theorell, Stockholm, Sweden | |||
EBV and lymphoma | Professor Michelle West, Sussex, UK | |||
Discussion | ||||
Metabolomics (including the following) | ||||
Stanford Update | Professor Ron Davis, Stanford Genome Institute, USA | |||
Cornell Update | Professor Maureen Hanson, New York, USA | |||
Australian Update | Dr Chris Armstrong, Melbourne, Australia | |||
Overview of metabolism studies at Haukeland | Professor Karl Johan Tronstad, Bergen, Norway | |||
Discussion | ||||
Neuroimaging (including the following) | ||||
ME imaging review and ongoing study | Dr Per Julin, Stockholm, Sweden | |||
Discussion |
BRMEC7 - Day 2 | ||||
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Opening 7th Invest in ME Research International Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 7 2017 - Day 2 | Dr Ian Gibson, UEA, UK | |||
Clinical Trials (including the following) | ||||
LDN in ME/CFS: data on safety and efficacy | Dr Olli Polo, Tampere, Finland | |||
RituxME and CycloME clinical trials | Professor Olav Mella, Bergen, Norway | |||
Impaired glucose metabolism and PDH in ME/CFS? | Dr. Øystein Fluge, Bergen, Norway | |||
B-vitamins in ME/CFS | Dr. Ingrid G. Rekeland, Bergen, Norway | |||
Immunadsorbtion trial | Professor Carmen Scheibenbogen, Berlin, Germany | |||
Discussion | ||||
Microbiome (including the following) | ||||
IFR/UEA update | Professor Simon Carding, Norwich, UK | |||
Alterations in the enteric bacterial and viral microbiome in ME/CFS | Professor Ludovic Giloteaux, New York, USA | |||
Columbia update | Associate Professor Mady Hornig, New York, USA | |||
Discussion | ||||
Biomarkers (including the following) | ||||
miRNA in CSF | Professor James Baraniuk, Washington DC, USA | |||
Epigenetic changes in ME/CFS | Dr Lubov Nathanson, Fort Lauderdale, USA | |||
Genetic and functional genetic studies in ME / HLA and ME |
Dr Asgeir Lande , Oslo, Norway
Professor Ola Didrik Saugstad , Oslo, Norway |
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Tbc | Professor Warren Tate, Otago, New Zealand | |||
Lactate during exercise in ME/CFS | Dr Katarina Lien, Oslo, Norway | |||
Discussion | ||||
Colloquium Summary |
Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 6 - 1st - 2nd June 2016
BRMEC6
IIMER BRMEC6 Research Meeting London, 2016
1st - 2nd June 2016
The CPD-accredited Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 6 (BRMEC6) took place in London over two days from 1st - 2nd June 2016.
This was the sixth Invest in ME - Research Colloquium and the objective was to increase international collaboration in research into ME.
The sixth colloquium was opened by Dr Vicky Whittemore of the USA National Institute of Research.
With full CPD accreditation the Colloquium involved the most experienced researchers in areas such as immunology, virology, neurology and bioinformatics.
Chairing and participating in the meeting were members of the Invest in ME Research Advisory Board and the newly formed European ME Research Group (EMERG).
We again had most of the main biomedical research initiatives now occurring throughout the world represented at the meeting.
The research Colloquium was in London and preceded the IIMEC11 annual international biomedical research conference on 1st June 2016.

BRMEC6 AGENDA
Click below to expand and show each day of the Colloquium
BRMEC6 - Day 1 | |||||
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Welcome to the 6th Invest in ME International Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium | Dr Ian Gibson, UEA, UK | Professor Jonathan Edwards, UCL, UK | |||
NIH Research into ME | Dr Vicky Whittemore, NIH, USA | ||||
Diagnosis (clinical) – Patient Stratification (including the following) | |||||
Clinical signs/symptoms of ME | Professor Olli Polo, Tampere University, Finland | ||||
Diagnostics and Patient Stratification for Research | Dr Amolak Bansal, Epsom & St Helier NHS Trust, UK | ||||
Protocols and Patient Databases for ME | Dr Luis Nacul, LSHTM, UK | ||||
Big Data Approach: Severely Ill ME Cohort | Professor Ron Davis, Stanford, USA | ||||
Chaired Discussion - Criteria to Use for ME/CFS Diagnosis | Professor Angela Vincent, Oxford University, UK | ||||
Sample Standardisation SOPs for Research (including the following) | |||||
Biobank Samples and Protocols for UK/Europe | Dr Eliana Lacerda, LSHTM, UK | ||||
Analysis Protocols for ME | Professor Jonas Bergquist, Uppsala University, Sweden | ||||
Chaired discussion Sample Standardisation SOPs for Research | Dr Jo Cambridge, UCL, UK | ||||
Biomarkers: 1 Data | |||||
Keynote Speech: Longitudinal Immunological & Virological Study for ME/CFS Biomarker Discovery | Professor Eleanor Riley, LSHTM, UK | ||||
Biomarkers: 2 Imaging | |||||
Immune-Brain Communication and Relationship to Inflammation and Cohort Selection Challenges | Dr Neil Harrison, Sussex University, UK | ||||
Neuroimaging in Clinical Practice in ME | tbc | ||||
Chaired Discussion Neuroimaging in ME Research | Professor Jonathan Edwards, UCL, UK | ||||
Biomarkers: 3 Mitochondria | |||||
Keynote Speech: Understanding and Preventing Mitochondrial Oxidative Damage | Dr Mike Murphy, MRC and Cambridge University, UK | ||||
Mitochondria in ME/CFS | Professor Maureen Hanson, Cornell University, USA | ||||
Chaired discussion/workshop with participants | Professor Jonas Blomberg, Uppsala University, Sweden | ||||
Adjourn |
Dr Eleanor Riley

Professor of Immunology, LSHTM, UK
Professor Eleanor Riley BSc BVSc PhD FSB FMedSci
Eleanor Riley graduated from Bristol University with degrees in Cellular Pathology and Veterinary Science. After an internship in Veterinary Pathology at Cornell University (USA) she studied for a PhD in immunology and parasitology in the Department of Veterinary Pathology at the University of Liverpool. She began working on the immunology of malaria in 1985, as a member of the senior scientific staff at the Medical Research Council Laboratories in The Gambia, West Africa. In 1990, Eleanor moved to the University of Edinburgh as a Wellcome Trust Senior Research Fellow. Eleanor moved to the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in October 1998 where she is Professor of Infectious Disease Immunology. Eleanor is currently Chair of the BBSRC Bioscience for Health Strategy Advisory Panel and Deputy Chair of the MRC Infections and Immunity Board.Other Links
Dr Mike Murphy

Programme Leader, MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit, Cambridge
Dr Mike Murphy
EDUCATION & EMPLOYMENT1980-1984 BA in Chemistry, first class honours, first in class, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland
1984-1987 PhD, Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, UK
1988 Associate Research Scientist, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York
1989 Teacher with Voluntary Services Overseas (London) in Zimbabwe
1990-1992 Lecturer, Biochemistry Department, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland
1992-2001 Lecturer/Senior Lecturer/Associate Professor, Biochemistry Department, University of Otago, New Zealand
1999 Sabbatical Visitor, Biozentrum, University of Basel, Switzerland
1999 Sabbatical Visitor, University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA
2000-2001 Associate Dean for Research, Otago School of Medical Sciences
2001-present Programme Leader, MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit, Cambridge, UK AWARDS & HONOURS 1982 C Walter Jones Prize in Organic Chemistry
1982-1987 Foundation Scholarship
1984 Cocker Medal for Experimental Chemistry
1984-1987 Open Research Studentship, Peterhouse, University of Cambridge
2000 Applied Biosystems Medal, NZ Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
2000 Research Medal of the New Zealand Association of Scientists
2001-present Honorary Fellow, Depts of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Otago
2008 The Nathan O. Kaplan Lecturer, University of California, San Diego
2012 Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand (Hon FRSNZ)
2016 Keilin Memorial Lecture and Medal EDITORIAL BOARDS
2003-present Biochemical Journal: Deputy chair (2007-), Editorial board (2003-)
1999-2014 Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics: Editorial board
2009-2011 Current Opinion in Investigational New Drugs: Editorial board
2012-present Free Radical Biology and Medicine: Editorial board
2002-present FEBS Journal: Editorial advisory panel
2013-present Redox Biology: Editorial board
2013-present Redox Report: Editorial board
2010-present Free Radical Research: Editorial board
2003–2007 Biochemical Society Theme Panel III (Bioenergetics and Metabolism)
2001-present Scientific Advisory Board, Antipodean Pharmaceuticals, Auckland and San Francisco
2010-2013 Telethon Italy, Scientific Committee
2009-2011 Buck Institute for Aging Research, external advisory board for the U54 Interdisciplinary Research Center
PATENTS
Mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith, United States Patent US 6,331,532.
Mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith, United States Patent US 6,984,636.
Mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith, Australian Patent AU 763179.
Mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith, New Zealand Patent NZ 505352.
Mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith, United States Patent US 7,109,189.
Mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith, New Zealand Patent NZ 538371.
Triphenylphosphonium thionitrite nitric oxide donors, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith European Patent EP2066680.
Triphenylphosphonium thionitrite nitric oxide donors, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith. Canadian Patent CA 2664744.
Triphenylphosphonium thionitrite nitric oxide donors, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith. United States Patent US 12/732,909.
Mitoquinone derivatives used as mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J Smith, United States patent US 7,888,334.
Mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P Murphy and Robin A. J Smith, Canadian Patent CA 2311318
Other Links
Fane Mensah

Research Assistant; Inflammation; Div of Medicine; Faculty of Medical Sciences, UCL, UK
Fane Mensah
Other Links
Dr Travis Craddock

Assistant professor of Psychology, Computer Science and Medicine, Institute for Neuro Immune Medicine, Nova Southeastern University, Miami, USA
Dr Travis Craddock
Travis Craddock, Ph.D. is an assistant professor of Psychology, Computer Science and Medicine applying systems biology and biophysics methods towards the purpose of identifying novel treatments for complex chronic illness involving neuroinflammation. His postdoctoral work was conducted under the supervision of Gordon Broderick, Ph.D., in the Broderick Laboratory for Clinical Systems Biology in the Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry at the University of Alberta. His work with Gordon Broderick, Ph.D., focused on using a theory driven systems biology approach to investigate neuroendocrine-immune interaction dynamics in neuroinflammation and its relation complex diseases such as Gulf War Illness, and chronic fatigue syndrome. This work was funded by the U.S. Department of Defense.
He received his BSc. in co-op physics from the University of Guelph and went on to finish a M.Sc. and Ph.D. in the field of biophysics at the University of Alberta under the supervision of Jack Tuszynski, Ph.D. His graduate research activities focused on subneural biomolecular information processing, and nanoscale neuroscience descriptions of memory, consciousness and cognitive dysfunction in neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease.
Other Links
Dr Chris Armstrong

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Dr Chris Armstrong
Other Links
Dr Ingrid Rekeland

Neurology, Rheumatology, Clinical Immunology, Haukeland University Hospital , Bergen, Norway
Dr Ingrid Gurvin Rekeland
Other Links
Dr Lubov Nathanson

Genetics, Molecular Biology, Bioinformatics, Nova Southeastern University , Florida, USA
Dr Lubov Nathanson
Other Links
Professor Ola Didrik Saugstad

Professor - Paediatric Research Institute, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Norway
Professor Ola Didrik Saugstad is a Norwegian pediatrician and neonatologist noted for his research on resuscitation of newborn children and his contribution to reduce child mortality.[2] Since 1991, he has been Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Oslo and Director of the Department of Pediatric Research at Oslo University Hospital, Rikshospitalet
Saugstad received the 2012 Nordic Medical Prize, is a member of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters and became a Knight First Class of the Order of St. Olav in 2010.
Other Links
Dr Asgeir Lande

Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Norway
Dr Asgeir Lande
Other Links
Dr Katarina Lien

University of Oslo, Norway
Dr Katarina Lien graduated from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo in 2000. I have clinical experience from primary care and psychiatry, and started working at the CFS/ME Centre at Oslo University Hospital in 2011.
She is particularly interested in pathophysiological mechanisms in chronic diseases.
In 2012 she received funding from The Norwegian Directorate of Health and The National Advisory Unit on CFS/ME, in order to gain experience on the use of CPET in patients with CFS/ME.
Currently, she is holding a research grant from the Norwegian ExtraFoundation for Health and Rehabilitation for the Ph.D. project “Cardiopulmonary exercise testing in patients with CFS/ME”.
She has been involved in the planning and implementation of the Rituximab trial RituxME, and is the local Principal Investigator at the CFS/ME Centre, Oslo University Hospital.
She is also engaged in CFS/ME patient education and information, and is a member of the Norwegian ME Association Scientific Advisory Board.
Other Links
- Norges ME Forening Presentations: IACFS/ME Biennial Conference. October 2016. International Association for CFS/ME. Fort Lauderdale, Florida: Lien K, Johansen B, Veierød MB, Haslestad AS, Melsom MN, Kardel KR, Iversen PO. “Blood lactate increases more rapidly after a previous exercise challenge in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME) than in healthy subjects” (manuscript in preparation). Publications: 1. Fluge, O., O. Mella, O. Bruland, K. Risa, S. E. Dyrstad, K. Alme, I. G. Rekeland, D. Sapkota, G. V. Rosland, A. Fossa, I. Ktoridou-Valen, S. Lunde, K. Sorland, K. Lien, I. Herder, H. Thurmer, M. E. Gotaas, K. A. Baranowska, L. M. Bohnen, C. Schafer, A. McCann, K. Sommerfelt, L. Helgeland, P. M. Ueland, O. Dahl and K. J. Tronstad (2016). "Metabolic profiling indicates impaired pyruvate dehydrogenase function in myalgic encephalopathy/chronic fatigue syndrome." JCI Insight 1(21): e89376.
Professor Warren Tate

University of Otago, New Zealand
Professor Warren Tate from University of Otago in New Zealand - is an internationally respected biochemist, winner of the Royal Society of New Zealand's top science honour - the 2010 Rutherford Medal, and was also named a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit. His honour citation noted that Professor Tate was a molecular biologist, whose research had "revolutionised understanding" of how proteins were synthesised in living cells. His research had shown how proteins contributed to memory formation and neurological disease, and had important implications for HIV, Alzheimer's and chronic fatigue syndrome. Professor Tate is a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand and of the New Zealand Institute of Chemistry. He has been a Fellow of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation of Germany, and an International Research Scholar of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute of the United States.
Other Links
Assistant Professor Petter Brodin

Karolinska Institutet, Sweden
Assistant Professor Petter Brodin's team at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden - is aiming to understand human immune system variation in health and disease, and understand the factors that shape human immune systems.
Other interests are in defining better metrics of immune system health and develoingp methods for better immune system analyses in human patients.
As a physician at the department of pediatrics at the Karolinska University Hospital, he has a particular interest in understanding when and how human immune systems are shaped early in life, and the influences by environmental exposures such as the microbiome, infections, vaccines, nutritional components etc in this process.
His team is firmly convinced that the way to understand human immune systems and their variation,
is to analyse all system components simultaneously and relathionships between these taken into account.
This have recently been made possible with the development of novel high-dimensional methods operating at single-cell resolution, such as Mass cytometry and scRNA-seq.
To analyze human immune systems at the systems-level, his team is developing novel experimental methods and algorithms for analyses.
Other Links
Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 5 - 27-28th May 2015
BRMEC5
BRMEC5 IiME Research Meeting London, 2015
The Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 5 (BRMEC5) took place over two days from 27th-28th May 2015.
This was the fifth Invest in ME Research Colloquium and over sixty researchers from thirteen countries round the world convened in London to discuss research, strategies and future planning.
The fifth colloquium built on past years and has now evolved into a major international event, with CPD accreditation, and involving the most experienced researchers in areas such as immunology, virology, neurology and bioinformatics.
Chairing the meeting was Dr Ian Gibson and Professor Jonathan Edwards - along with the Invest in ME Research Advisory Board.
The research meeting was by invitation only but the charity made available places for researchers and some students who would add to the meeting or who were interested collaborating with our increasing group of international researchers in performing biomedical research into ME.
We had representatives from most of the main biomedical research initiatives now occurring throughout the world represented at the meeting.

BRMEC5 - Day 2 | |
---|---|
Welcome - Overview/summary of previous day Objectives of DAY 2 | Dr Ian Gibson, UEA, UK Prof Jonathan Edwards, UCL, UK |
Neurology: Lead Angela Vincent (Oxford Univ.) | |
Keynote Speech: Imaging Inflammation and Its Role in Neurodegeneration |
Professor David Brooks, Imperial College London, UK |
Immune-Brain Communication and Relationship to Inflammation | Dr Neil Harrison Sussex Uni, UK |
FMRI and ME/CFS | Prof James Baraniuk Georgetown University, USA |
Discussions | |
Chaired discussion with participants | |
Biomarkers | |
Immunological markers in ME/CFS | Professor Sonya Marshall-Gradisnik Professor Don Staines Griffiths University, Australia Australia |
Vision and ME/CFS | Dr Claire Hutchinson Leicester Uni., UK |
CSF Proteomics in a Swedish ME/CFS patient cohort | Prof Jonas Bergquist Uppsala Uni, Sweden Sweden |
Glucocorticoid receptors and ME/CFS | Dr Amolak Bansal, Epsom and St Helier NHS University Hospital, Surrey, UK |
Molecular markers before/after exercise | Prof Betsy Keller, Cornell Uni, USA |
Discussions | |
Chaired discussion with participants | |
Clinical trials | |
Trial design, good practice | Prof Jonathan Edwards, UCL, UK |
Norwegian rituximab research/trials | Prof Olav Mella/ Dr Oystein Fluge Haukeland Uni.,Norway |
Discussions | |
Chaired discussion with participants | |
Additional Topics | |
Funding | tbc |
Discussions | |
Chaired discussion with participants | |
Adjourn |
Dr Ian Gibson

Former Dean of Biological Sciences, UEA
Dr Ian Gibson, former Labour MP for Norwich North, worked at University of East Anglia for 32 years, became Dean of the school of biological sciences in 1991 and was head of a cancer research team and set up the Francesca Gunn Leukaemia Laboratory at UEA. In 2011 Dr Gibson received an honorary doctorate of civil law from UEA.
Other Links
Professor Simon Carding

Leader, Gut Health and Food Safety Programme Institute of Food Research, Norwich Research Park, UK
Professor Simon Carding Professor of Mucosal Immunology at University of East Anglia and Institute of Food Research. Following his PhD at London he held postdoctoral positions at New York University School of Medicine, New York and at Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, USA. He then moved to the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA as Assistant and later Associate Professor. He joined University of Leeds as Professor of Molecular Immunology in the Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology in 1999. His scientific interests are in understanding how the immune response in the gut functions and in particular, is able to distinguish between the commensal microbes that reside in the gut and environmental microbes that cause disease, and in the mechanisms by which the body's immune system no longer ignores or tolerates commensal gut bacteria and how this leads to immune system activation and inflammatory bowel disease.
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Professor Angela Vincent
Emeritus Professor of Neuroimmunology, University of Oxford
Professor Vincent is Emeritus Professor of Neuroimmunology at the University of Oxford, and an Emeritus Fellow of Somerville College. She holds an Honorary Consultant position in Immunology and runs the Clinical Neuroimmunology service which is an international referral centre for the measurement of antibodies in neurological diseases.
Together with colleagues she collaborates with neurologists worldwide. She was formerly Head of Department of Clinical Neurology (2005-2008), and is a Past President of the International Society of Neuroimmunology, and an Associate Editor of Brain.
She was a co-applicant and group leader of OXION, the Wellcome Trust-funded Integrative Physiology Initiative "Ion channels and Diseases of Electrically Excitable Cells". She is a member of Faculty of 1000 (Neuroscience, Neurobiology of Disease and Regeneration)
Her major interest is in the role of autoimmunity in neurological diseases, including multiple sclerosis and auto-antibody mediated ion channel and receptor disorders. Recent advances have included (a) the discovery that maternal antibodies to different fetal proteins can cause rare neuromuscular disorders, and may be involved in some forms of autism or other neurodevelopmental disorders; (b) the definition and characterisation of a new form of myasthenia gravis associated with antibodies to a receptor tyrosine kinase, MuSK, that performs an important maintenance role at the neuromuscular junction; and (c) the recognition that some central nervous system disorders, involving memory loss, seizures, movement disorders, can be caused by antibodies to potassium ion channels and to various receptor proteins.
In these, and several other conditions, new ways are being devised to measure the pathogenic antibodies for better clinical diagnosis, and establishing model in vitro and in vivo systems for investigation of the pathophysiology of the diseases. Her group also works, in collaboration with Profs David Beeson and Nick Willcox, on the genetics of myasthenia and the factors that determine autoimmune responses to the main target, the acetylcholine receptor.
Dr Amir Landi

Research Scientist, Department of Medical Microbiology & Immunology, University of Alberta, Canada
Dr Landi works at Professor Michael Houghton's laboratory in the Dept. of Medical Microbiology & Immunology at the University of Alberta, Canada. He is a member of the ME/CFS committee of the Alberta Medical Association and Research & Medical Advisor, National ME/FM Action Network, Canada.
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Professor Jonathan Edwards

Emeritus Professor of Connective Tissue Medicine University College London (UCL)
Professor Jonathan Edwards, of UCL's Department of Medicine, announced a highly original new treatment for rheumatoid arthritis in October 2000. His team has conducted trials of a new combination of drugs on patients who have suffered from rheumatoid arthritis for as long as 20 years; all but two of the 22 patients have so far shown marked improvements in their symptoms of the disease. More information IIMER Rituximab Clinical Trial for ME Professor Edwards has been the charity's advisor. He has played a major part in initiating the IiMER rituximab clinical trial project which IiMER and UCL initiated - click here
Other Links
Associate Professor Mady Hornig

Associate Professor, Center for Infection and Immunity (CII), Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health New York, USA
Mady Hornig, MA, MD is a physician-scientist in the Center for Infection and Immunity (CII) at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health where she serves as Director of Translational Research and is an associate professor of epidemiology. Her research focuses on the role of microbial, immune, and toxic stimuli in the development of neuropsychiatric conditions, including autism, PANDAS (Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcal infection), mood disorders and myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). She is widely known both for establishing animal models that identify how genes and maturational factors interact with environmental agents to lead to brain disorders and for her work clarifying the role of viruses, intestinal microflora and xenobiotics in autism and other neuropsychiatric illnesses that may be mediated by immune mechanisms. Under her direction, proteomic analyses of umbilical cord samples are identifying potential birth biomarkers for autism in a prospective study in Norway, the Autism Birth Cohort (ABC). She established that there was no association between intestinal measles virus transcripts and autism, and, with Brent Williams and W. Ian Lipkin at CII, has found altered expression of genes relating to carbohydrate metabolism and inflammatory pathways and differences in the bacteria harboured in the intestines of children with autism. She also leads projects examining the influence of immune molecules on brain development and function and their role in the genesis of schizophrenia, major depression, and cardiovascular disease comorbidity in adults, and directs the Chronic Fatigue initiative Pathogen Discovery and Pathogenesis Project at CII. In 2004, Dr. Hornig presented to the Institute of Medicine Immunization Safety Review Committee and testified twice before congressional subcommittees regarding the role of infections and toxins in autism pathogenesis. Her work in ME/CFS is establishing immune profiles and helping to identify pathogens that may be linked to disease.
Other Links
Dr Jo Cambridge

Principal Research Fellow Inflammation, Div of Medicine Faculty of Medical Sciences, UCL
Her group focuses its interests on B cell depletion (an idea which they introduced (with the Professor Jo Edwards) approximately 10 years ago for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis), exploring more precisely how the technique works and trying to explain the marked variation in response between different patients.
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Dr Amolak Bansal

Consultant Clinical Immunology and Immunopathology Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust Surrey, UK
Dr. Bansal trained in immunology and allergy from 1989 to 1993 at St. Mary's Hospital in Manchester and at Hope Hospital in Salford. From here he spent five years (1993-1997) as Senior Lecturer and Consultant in Clinical Immunology in the Department of Medicine at the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane, Australia. From 1997 to the present date Dr. Bansal has worked as a Consultant in Clinical Immunology and Immunopathology at Epsom and St Helier University Hospital. Dr Bansal's key interests lie in allergy, autoimmunity, CFS/ME and immunodeficiency. Dr Bansal is involved in the gut microbiota study at UEA, the IIMER rituximab clinical trial and Autoimmunity and ME, a study involving the hypothalamus - all projects funded by Invest in ME. Research from Dr Bansal
Other Links
Dr Oystein Fluge

Dr Oystein Fluge
Oystein Fluge received medical degree in 1988 at the University of Bergen, and is a specialist in oncology since 2004. He has worked as a Research Fellow with support from the Norwegian Cancer Society and is now chief physician at the Cancer Department, Haukeland University Hospital. Doctoral work emanates from the Surgical Institute and Department of Molecular Biology, University of Bergen.Other Links
Prof Olav Mella

Professor Olav Mella
Professor Mella has performed clinical trials to test the benefit of B-cell depletion therapy using Rituximab in ME/CFS patients. Dr. Olav Mella of Haukeland University Hospital in Bergen, Norway began his investigation of Rituximab’s effects on CFS after treating several Hodgkin’s Lymphoma patients who had long standing cases of CFS prior to developing cancer. Professor Mella and Dr Fluge have published a paper "Benefit from B-Lymphocyte Depletion Using the Anti-CD20 Antibody Rituximab in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. A Double-Blind and Placebo-Controlled Study"Other Links
Dr Claire Hutchinson

Lecturer in the College of Medicine, Biological Sciences and Psychology at the University of Leicester
Claire Hutchinson is a vision scientist.
The majority of her work is concerned with how visual sensory information is encoded by the human visual system.
Her research includes healthy visual perception, age-related visual decline, and visual markers of 'non-visual' illnesses.
It is this latter strand of research that led her to study vision-related problems in ME/CFS.
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Professor Jonas Bergquist

Full Chair Professor in Analytical Chemistry and Neurochemistry at the Department of Chemistry, Uppsala University, Sweden
Professor Begquist has a background as MD, Associate Professor of Clinical Neuroscience , Sahlgrenska University Hospital and the University of Gothenburg. Since 1999 , he has been a researcher in Uppsala, Sweden, and in 2005 was appointed professor of analytical chemistry and neurochemistry at the Department of Chemistry - BMC , Uppsala University. From 2011 he worked also as an adjunct professor of pathology at the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.Other Links
Professor Ian Charles

Director Institute of Food Research, Norwich, UK
Professor Ian Charles joins the Institute of Food Research in May 2015 to lead the programme to develop the UK’s new Centre for Food & Health to be based at the Norwich Research Park. Professor Charles is returning to the UK from Australia where he was Director of the ithree institute, University of Technology, Sydney. Professor Charles has over 30 years’ experience in academic and commercial research. His academic career has included being a founding member of The Wolfson Institute for Biomedical Research at University College London, one the UK’s first institutes of translational medicine. He has also worked in the pharmaceutical industry at Glaxo Wellcome, and has been founder and CSO of biotech companies in the area of infectious disease, including Arrow Therapeutics, sold to AstraZeneca, and Auspherix a venture capital backed company founded in 2013. His current research interests include infectious diseases as well as the microbiome and its impact on health and wellbeing. The new Centre for Food & Health will provide a step change for food and health research, and the translation of science by industry, to benefit society and the UK economy. The Centre will be located at the Norwich Research Park, one of Europe’s largest single-site concentrations of research in Food, Health and Environmental sciences. The multidisciplinary Centre aims to bring together the Institute of Food Research and aspects of the University of East Anglia’s Faculty of Science and the Norwich Medical School with the regional gastrointestinal endoscopy facility at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital. With a unique integration of diet, health, nutrition and medicine under one roof, linking closely to world class plant and crop research at the John Innes Centre and bioinformatics at The Genome Analysis Centre (both also located on the Norwich Research Park), it will have the potential to deliver clinically validated strategies to improve human health and wellbeing.Other Links
The Next Generation of Researchers

Invest in ME Research Students and Researchers
The Next Generation of Scientists
.................
Other Links
- Fane Mensah, UCL [ME/CFS – Through The Eyes of a Young Researcher]
- Navena Navaneetharaja, UEA/IFR
- Bharat Harbham, UEA
- Daniel Vipond, UEA/IFR [UK Gut Microbiota Research Update]
Professor Sonya Marshall-Gradisnik

The National Centre for Neuroimmunology and Emerging Diseases (NCNED), Griffiths University, Australia
Professor Marshall-Gradisnik is one of Australia's foremost researchers in the area of neuroimmunology and has been instrumental in establishing the Public Health and Neuroimmunology Unit (PHANU) at Bond University. Much of her work relates specifically to autoimmunity in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome sufferers and she is regularly asked to speak to community groups on behalf of Queensland Health and NSW Health. Her research in the area of exercise immunology has also contributed to the body of knowledge relating to the effect of doping in sport and she serves as Sports Medicine Australia's national spokesperson in this area. The vital research conducted by Professor Marshall has attracted more than $1 million in grant funding and she has produced 21 peer-reviewed papers, five book chapters and one provisional patent. In 2008 Dr Marshall was joint leader of the Bond University team responsible for developing the the BioSMART program. The team was awarded a prestigious Australian Teaching and Learning Council Award (formerly known as the Carrick Award) for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning and for the quality of student learning over a sustained period of time. Professor Marshall-Gradisnik is also leading The National Centre for Neuroimmunology and Emerging Diseases (NCNED), a research team situated at Griffith University on the Gold Coast. The team focuses on Myalgic Encephalomyelitis.Other Links
Professor Don Staines MBBS MPH FAFPHM FAFOEM

The National Centre for Neuroimmunology and Emerging Diseases (NCNED), Griffiths University, Australia
Professor Staines has been a public health physician at Gold Coast Population Health Unit. He has worked in health services management and public health practice in Australia and overseas. His interests include collaborative health initiatives with other countries as well as cross-disciplinary initiatives within health. Communicable diseases as well as post infectious fatigue syndromes are his main research interests. A keen supporter of the Griffith University Medical School, he enjoys teaching and other opportunities to promote awareness of public health in the medical curriculum. He is now Co-Director at The National Centre for Neuroimmunology and Emerging Diseases (NCNED), Griffiths University in Australia
Dr John Chia

Infectious Disease Specialist, Torrance, California, USA
Dr Chia is an infectious disease specialist practicing in Torrance, California, USA and has published research recently (Chronic fatigue syndrome associated with chronic enterovirus infection of the stomach) on the role of enteroviruses in the aetiolgy of ME/CFS – an area which has been implicated as one of the triggers by a number of studies.There are more than 70 different types of enteroviruses that can affect the central nervous system, heart and muscles, all of which is consistent with the symptoms of ME/CFS. By analyzing samples of stomach tissue from 165 patients with CFS, Dr. Chia's team discovered that 82% of these individuals had high levels of enteroviruses in their digestive systems. Dr Chia's research may result in the development of antiviral drugs to treat the debilitating symptoms of ME/CFS.
Dr Chia is President of the Enterovirus Foundation and Assistant Professor at the UCLA School of Medicine.
Other Links
Dr Neil Harrison

Honorary Consultant Neuropsychiatrist, Brighton & Sussex Medical School, UK
Dr Harrison's' work in the laboratory focuses on understanding how infection or inflammation in the body interacts with the brain.For most these symptoms are usually short lived and relatively mild. However, when the immune system is activated for long periods, such as in people suffering from rheumatoid arthritis, they can become extremely debilitating or even life-threatening.
Understanding how the immune system interacts with the brain is a crucial first step that will form the foundations for future development of novel therapies targeting these common and disabling symptoms.
Most of his studies utilise a combination of functional brain imaging (e.g. fMRI, FDG-PET, EEG, polysomnography), experimental models of inflammation, custom cognitive tasks and diverse measures of peripheral immune status.
Other Links
- Gray matter textural heterogeneity as a potential in-vivo biomarker of fine structural abnormalities in Asperger syndrome. Radulescu, E., Ganeshan, B., Minati, L., Beacher, F.D.C.C., Gray, M.A., Chatwin, C., Young, R.C.D., (...), Critchley, H.D. 2012 Pharmacogenomics Journal (in Press)
Professor Betsy Keller

Ithaca College, USA
Professor Keller is Professor Ithaca College, Dept. of Exercise and Sport Sciences, Ithaca, NY.RESEARCH / CLINICAL FOCUS: Since 2003 Professor Keller has tested persons ill with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) for purposes of research and/or to provide an objective assessment of functional capacity and ability to perform and recover from physical work. Often, these individuals seek an objective indication of illness status to apply for disability benefits. A two-day exercise test protocol has shown to be instrumental in delineating abnormal responses to and recovery from exercise in ME/CFS patients. Her report of test results and interpretation has been successful in many cases to support an argument for disability coverage.
There are only a few researchers in the USA who have performed and interpreted the two-day exercise test protocol on ME/CFS patients, and therefore have observed first-hand the anomalous multisystem responses of these patients 24 hours post-exercise.
Professor Keller continues to expand the small body of peer-reviewed evidence of the abnormal recovery response to physical activity in ME/CFS so that most, if not all clinicians, researchers, health insurers and patient family members also understand the deleterious impact of this illness.
To that end, She has collaborated on an NIH R21 grant with PI, Maureen Hanson, from Cornell University to study the effects of exercise in ME/CFS on parameters of physiological and immune function.
Together they continue to analyze this data and other data collected to better understand how to help those with ME/CFS.
Other Links
Dr Luis Nacul

London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, UK
Dr Luis Nacul is Honorary Clinical Senior Lecturer at London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine........................
Other Links
- A Disease Register for ME/CFS : Report of a Pilot Study
- Prevalence of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) in three regions of England : a repeated cross-sectional study in primary care
- Considerations in establishing a post-mortem brain and tissue bank for the study of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome: a proposed protocol
BRMEC5 Keynote Speaker: Professor David Brooks

Invest in ME are pleased to announce that giving a keynote speech at BMEC5 will be Professor David Brooks from Imperial College, London. Professor Brooks is Hartnett Professor of Neurology in the Department of Medicine.
Professor Brooks' research involves the use of positron emission tomography and magnetic resonance imaging to diagnose and study the progression of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases in life and to validate imaging biomarkers for therapeutic trials.
Professor Brooks will be giving a keynote speech on Imaging Inflammation and Its Role in Neurodegeneration. This is important for understanding and evaluating the role of imaging in diagnostics and may aid researchers involved in ME-related imaging studies.
Professor David Brooks MD, DSc, FRCP, FMedSci
To date, Professor Brooks has published over 350 reports in peer reviewed journals, including Nature and has an h index of 97. His research is supported by grants from the EU FP7 programmes, UK Medical Research Council, the Alzheimer's Research Trust, Parkinson's UK, the Michael J Fox Foundation, Lundbeck Foundation, Danish Council for Independent Research, and industry. He is Chairman of the Executive Committee of the EMBL Nordic Hub at Aarhus University and is a member of the scientific advisory board of Alzheimer UK. He has been a member of the scientific advisory boards of the German Dementia and Parkinson networks, the Austrian KLIF Science Fund, the Research Advisory Panels of the UK Parkinson's Disease Society, Inserm, the Michael J. Fox Foundation (2002-2006), UK Medical Research Council Neuroscience and Mental Health Board (2004-2007), UK Huntington's Disease Association, and was Chairman of the Scientific Issues Committee of the Movement Disorder Society (1998-2002) and a Director of the International Society of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism (1993-1997). He was Chairman of the Council of Management of the UK Parkinson's Disease Society 1997-8. He is an Associate Editor of Brain and on the Editorial Boards of Parkinsonism and Related Disorders, Basal Ganglia, Journal of Parkinson's Disease, Clinical Neurology and Neurosurgery, Synapse, Molecular Imaging and Biology, Journal of Neurotherapeutics, and Current Trends in Neurology. He was on the editorial boards of the Journal of Neural Transmission, Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry and Movement Disorders. In 2001 he was elected a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Science, UK. In 2002 he was invited to give the Stan Fahn Lecture at the International Congress of Movement Disorders, Miami, in 2003 the George Cotzias Lecture in Madrid, in 2004 the Charles E Wilson Lecture, the Psychobiology Institute, Jerusalem March 2004, in 2005 the Kuhl-Lassen lecture at the Society of Nuclear Medicine, Toronto, and in 2006 the Sprague lecture at UC Irvine.
Professor David Brooks BioDr Daniel Peterson

Former Dean of Biological Sciences, UEA
With over 25 years of medical practice, Dr Daniel L. Peterson has become a sought-after internist for diagnosing difficult and complex medical cases.
When several patients in Incline Village became ill with symptoms that resembled persistent mononucleosis, Daniel Peterson was one of the first physicians to recognize an outbreak of what is known as ME/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS). He became a pioneering physician and researcher in understanding the biological characteristics and methods for diagnosing, managing and treating ME/CFS. He has also performed major studies of Ampligen as a treatment for ME/CFS, and studying the possible role of human herpes virus 6 (HHV-6) in CFS patients.
Dr. Peterson's experience as both a clinician and a research collaborator provides a unique perspective on CFS/ME for developing translational science.
Other Links
Professor Maureen Hanson

Liberty Hyde Bailey Professor, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Cornell University, New York, USA
Maureen Hanson is Liberty Hyde Bailey Professor in the Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY. Previously she was on the faculty of the Department of Biology at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville and an NIH NRSA postdoctoral fellow at Harvard, where she also completed her Ph.D. degree. While most of her prior research has concerned cell and molecular biology in plant cells, she began a research program on ME/CFS after noting at a 2007 IACFS meeting the paucity of molecular biologists studying the illness. Her lab was part of the 2012 multicenter study organized by Ian Lipkin's group at Columbia University to assess the actual role of XMRV in ME/CFS. Dr. Hanson has a current project to examine the microbiome of ME/CFS patients and controls, in collaboration with Dr. Ruth Ley (Cornell Microbiology) and Susan Levine, M.D. (Manhattan, NY). Dr Levine is also collaborating with Dr. Hanson on an immune cell gene expression project that involves Dr. Fabien Campagne and Dr. Rita Shaknovich at Weill Cornell Medical School in New York City. Dr. Hanson's third project concerns analysis of blood samples from individuals performing a two-day cardiopulmonary exercise test at Ithaca College under the supervision of Dr. Betsy Keller.
Other Links
Professor Jonas Blomberg

Emeritus Professor of Clinical Virology, Department of Medical Sciences, Uppsala University, Sweden
Professor Jonas Blomberg is an MD and PhD, graduating at the University of Gothenburg. Has worked with Lipids at the department of Medical Biochemistry 1965-1972 as a Clinical Virologist in Gothenburg 1972-1979 and as a postDoc at John Stephensons Lab at NCI Frederick on retroviruses 1979-1981. He then worked as a Clinical Virologist in Lund, Sweden 1981-1995 and then as a professor of Clinical Virology in Uppsala 1996- to the present.
His main fields of interest are: Retrovirology, Bioinformatics, Clinical Virology and broadly targeted and multiplex methods for detection of microbial nucleic acid.
He also is interested in evolution and Infection biology.
Professor Blomberg is on the editorial board of Journal of Virology http://jvi.asm.org/site/misc/edboard.xhtml.
Other Links
Professor James Baraniuk

Professor of Medicine at Georgetown University Medical Centre, washington, USA
James N. Baraniuk was born in Alberta, Canada, south of Banff. He earned his honours degree in chemistry and microbiology, medical degree, and unique bachelor's degree in medicine (cardiology) at the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada. Thereafter, he moved to Akron, OH, USA, for his internship and internal medicine residency at St Thomas Hospital. After another year of internal medicine residency at Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, he trained with Dr C.E. Buckley, III, in allergy and clinical immunology. He moved to the laboratory of Dr Michael Kaliner at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Bethesda, MD, and there began his long-standing collaboration with Dr Kimihiro Ohkubo. After 2 years studying neuropeptides, he joined Dr Peter Barnes' laboratory at the National Heart and Lung Institute, Brompton Hospital, London, UK. Dr Baraniuk returned to Washington, DC, and Georgetown University, where he is currently Associate Professor with Tenure in the Department of Medicine.
Other Links
Professor Ronald Davis

Professor of Biochemistry and Genetics at the Stanford School of Medicine in Stanford, California, USA
Ronald W. Davis, Ph.D., is a Professor of Biochemistry and Genetics at the Stanford School of Medicine in Stanford, California.
He is a world leader in the development of biotechnology, especially the development of recombinant DNA and genomic methodologies and their application to biological systems.
At Stanford University, where he is Director of the Stanford Genome Technology Center, Dr. Davis focuses on the interface of nano-fabricated solid state devices and biological systems.
He and his research team also develop novel technologies for the genetic, genomic, and molecular analysis of a wide range of model organisms as well as humans.
The team's focus on practical application of these technologies is setting the standard for clinical genomics.
Other Links
Doris Jones MSc

Medical Researcher, UK
Doris Jones is an independent medical researcher who investigates the dangers of drugs, particularly those causing ME.
She has been involved in ME issues since 1989 - since her son developed ME in 1980 aged 12 1/2. She carried out a very large multifactorial study into ME for which she was awarded an MSc in 1992 and has shown the results of that study, and subsequent independently conducted studies, at various international conferences. She was also a Reference Group member to the CMO's Working Group on CFS/ME and submitted numerous documents to that group, including results of a long-term follow-up study. She have recently made two submissions to the Gibson Inquiry - most of these details are on the 25% ME group website. Subsequently she had 2 articles published on exactly these links and associations, one was published as a Second Opinion item in the What Doctors Don't Tell You newsletter, Dec.1993, the other - a much more comprehensive overview piece with many references - was published in the March 1997 issue of Yoga & Health.
In her own research she has identified another specific group (a possible subgroup) of ME/CFS patients, i.e. those who attribute the onset of ME on an exacerbation of their existing illness to the use of the antibiotic Septrin / Bactrim (generic name Cotrimoxazole).
She has performed 2 separate studies on such patients, details of which were shown at the 2 international conferences on CFS and Related Disorders in 1995 and 1999 in Brussels and elsewhere. The abstract of the first of these studies was published in the Journal of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, 1996. This particular antibiotic was severely restricted in the UK in 1995 (and in Sweden already about 10 years earlier!). She has covered this particular topic in an article published in the November 1996 issue of Yoga & Health and again the DoH, the Health Select Committee and just recently the Gibson Inquiry have been informed of these links.
She has notified the Health Select Committee of these links for some of their inquiries (and indeed much earlier in 1992 the DoH!), and just recently has submitted evidence to the Gibson Inquiry.
Doris strongly believes that the link between vaccines and some cases of ME should be properly investigated as a matter of urgency.
Dr Vicky Whittemore

Program Director in the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke at the National Institutes of Health in the United States.
Dr. Whittemore is a Program Director in the Synapses, Channels and Neural Circuits Cluster. Her interest is in understanding the underlying mechanisms of the epilepsies including the study of genetic and animal models of the epilepsies.
The major goal is to identify effective treatments for the epilepsies and to develop preventions. Dr. Whittemore received a Ph.D. in anatomy from the University of Minnesota, followed by post-doctoral work at the University of California, Irvine, and a Fogarty Fellowship at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden.
She was on the faculty of the University of Miami School of Medicine in The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis prior to working with several non-profit organizations including the Tuberous Sclerosis Alliance, Genetic Alliance, Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy (CURE), and the National Coalition for Health Professional Education in Genetics (NCHPEG).
She also just completed a four-year term on the National Advisory Neurological Disorders and Stroke Council.
Other Links
Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 4 - 30th May 2014
BRMEC4
BRMEC4 Research Meeting London, 2014
The BRMEC4 Colloquium was intended to harness the potential of international collaboration with an objective of extending research cooperation and help drive new initiatives with biomedical research into ME.
The research meeting was in London and preceded the IIMEC9 annual international biomedical research conference on 30th May 2014.
Almost 50 researchers from nine countries attended the colloquium and a number of new initiatives were created which will benefit biomedical research into ME.

Welcome to London and BRMEC4 2014
Dear Participants,
Welcome to the Invest in ME Biomedical Research for ME Colloquium Meeting (BRMEC4) on 29th May 2014. Thank you again for participating in this exciting and innovative meeting which builds on the foundations made in previous years through meetings organised by the dedication and commitment of Invest in ME and its supporters.
Promising developments have been initiated in recent years which have created important possibilities for changing the way that Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME, known also as or ME/CFS or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS)) is researched and the way that patients are treated. High-quality research by an impressive group of researchers and physicians, with an emphasis on international collaboration - these are the aims of Invest in ME and it is our intention to continue to facilitate this and encourage new scientific research endeavours to understand the pathogenesis of ME.
This will be our fourth international ME research colloquium in London, taking place prior to our annual IiME international conference, and we look forward to enabling a unique contribution to understanding ME and suggest future research. For those who can use CPD points then this meeting has been awarded 6 CPD points by the Royal Colleges.
Co-Chairs of the meeting will be Dr Ian Gibson, former Dean of Biology at UEA, and Emeritus Professor of Connective Tissue Medicine Jonathan Edwards, University College London.
We look forward to meeting up in London.
Warm regards
Kathleen McCall Chairman Invest in ME
Invest in ME BRMEC4 | |
---|---|
Welcome and introductions | Co-Chairs: Dr. Ian Gibson Prof.Jonathan Edwards UCL |
Pathogen Discovery and Pathogenesis - CFI | Dr. Mady Hornig, Columbia Univ, USA |
Infection-induced autoimmunity in ME | Prof. Jonas Blomberg, Uppsala Univ, Sweden |
Microbiome of ME/CFS patients | Prof. Maureen Hanson, Cornell Univ.,USA |
OMI research Update | Dr Andreas Kogelnik, OMI, USA |
Chaired Discussions | Prof. Jonathan Edwards/Dr.Ian Gibson |
Antibodies in Neurological Diseases | Prof. Angela Vincent, Oxford Univ. |
Rituximab multi-centre clinical trial | Prof.Olav Mella/Dr. Oystein Fluge, Bergen, Norway |
Rituximab UK clinical - Preliminary B-cell study |
Dr. Jo Cambridge, UCL, UK |
EBV and ME | Prof. Carmen Scheibenbogen, Charite, Berlin |
Chaired Discussions | Prof. Jonathan Edwards/Dr.Ian Gibson |
Update on ANS studies | Prof. Julia Newton, Newcastle, UK |
Brain imaging and ME | Prof. James Baraniuk Georgetown Univ., USA |
NK-, B- and T-cell phenotypes and function in patients suffering from ME | Prof. Sonya Marshall-Gradisnik, Griifiths Univ.,Australia |
ME Biobank | Dr. Eliana Lacerda/Dr Luis Nacul, LSHTM |
Chaired Discussions | Prof. Jonathan Edwards/Dr.Ian Gibson |
Ways to Continue Collaboration and Discovery Funding Possibilities - IiME Proposal | Plenary: Prof. Jonathan Edwards/Dr.Ian Gibson |
Closing Summary and Future Directions | Prof. Jonathan Edwards/Dr.Ian Gibson Briefing to Invest in ME Conference |

BRMEC4 Report
The Invest in ME Biomedical Research for ME Colloquium Meeting (BRMEC4) was held on 29th May 2014 in London and was the charity's fourth research meeting.
The charity organised and hosted the Colloquium prior to its annual international biomedical research conference every year.
The objectives were:
- To present the status of the latest initiatives occurring in biomedical research into ME
- Review experiences and expertise from other research areas in order to assist ME research
- To generate new ideas regarding research into ME and assess research strategies for ME research
- To discuss and explore the possibilities for collaboration and for funding for biomedical research into ME
Promising developments have been initiated in recent years which have created important possibilities for changing the way that Myalgic Encephalomyelitis is researched and the way that patients are treated.
High-quality research by an impressive group of researchers and physicians, with an emphasis on international collaboration -these are the aims of Invest in ME and it is our intention to continue to facilitate this and encourage new scientific
research endeavours to understand the pathogenesis of ME.
The Colloquium/Conference Summary is a document produced by the charity to aid healthcare professionals in becoming aware of the developments in ME research - many of which have been initiated by patients.
We have also included the Bansal Score Chart - from Dr Amolak Bansal's IIMEC9 presentation - which is meant to provide a simple way for
guiding GPs in possible diagnosis of ME.
The charity is happy to provide the printed version of this document to help patients in their dealings with GPs and other healthcare staff.
Please contact Invest in ME for more details.
Please note - the following pdf document is copyrighted to Invest in ME and may not be copied or published without express permission from Invest in ME

Please use the link to this page if referring to this document
Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 3 - 2013
BRMEC3
BRMEC3 Research Meeting London, 2013
In May 2013 the Biomedical Research into ME Collaborative meeting was held in London with 40 researchers from 9 countries attending, prior to the IIMEC8 Invest in ME International ME Conference 2013 - http://bit.ly/ZK7eoC To raise awareness of ME, and promote collaboration, innovation and foundations for a clearer strategy of biomedical research into ME, Invest in ME and the Alison Hunter Memorial Foundation of Australia continue the collaboration which has been a feature for several years, and which established the Clinical Autoimmunity Working Group which met in London in May 2012.
To achieve continued progress in understanding and treating this disease we must establish collaborations between biomedical researchers who can agree a clear strategy of biomedical research. Therefore, to attempt to increase collaboration and awareness and to encourage new researchers to the field we are arranging a research meeting which brings together major researchers in order to crowd source ideas on ME research - a Biomedical Research into ME Collaborative meeting. Representatives from seven countries attended.
Since its inception Invest in ME have campaigned for biomedical research into ME. IiME began arranging our biomedical research conferences in our first year and have continued them ever since - mostly funded by the charity but with help from some wonderful supporters and some good friends.
At our IIMEC8 conference we focus on ME now becoming a mainstream research area. We have representatives from most of the main biomedical research initiatives now occurring throughout the world.

Welcome to London and BRMEC3 2013
Dear Friends,
It is an honour to welcome you to London and the Biomedical Research into ME Collaborative meeting. This meeting has been made possible through the continued commitment to biomedical research being made by UK charity Invest in ME and their supporters.
The objectives of the meeting are:
1. To present the status of the latest initiatives occurring in biomedical research into ME
2. To discuss and explore the possibilities for collaboration and for funding for biomedical research into ME
3. To generate new ideas regarding research into ME and assess research strategies for ME research
4. Review evidence for immunological derangement in ME
5. Review experiences and expertise from other research areas in order to assist ME research
6. To discuss opportunities for extending clinical trials in multiple centres and possibly internationally
7. To plan future events
We hope that the meeting will initiate new collaborations and generate new ideas for biomedical research into ME and help researchers support each other in the future.
The extraordinary skill and experience which can be harnessed by meetings such as last year’s Clinical Autoimmunity Working Group meeting in London and this year’s BRMEC meeting, as well as the possibilities to progress further understanding of the disease by “crowdsourcing” experience and ideas, promises to enable a unique contribution to understanding ME and suggest future research directions and perhaps treatments.
Chairing the meeting will be Dr Ian Gibson, former Dean of Biology at UEA and Professor Hugh Perry of Southampton University Chair of the Medical Research Council Neurosciences and Mental Health Board.
Invest in ME is keen and willing to support further collaborative efforts in biomedical research into ME and welcome the opportunity to continue these joint efforts,
Warm regards
Kathleen McCall Chairman Invest in ME
Invest in ME Research BRMEC3 | |
---|---|
Welcome and introductions | (Chairs: Dr Ian Gibson/Professor Hugh Perry) |
Pathogen Discovery and Pathogenesis = CFI | (Professor Mady Hornig) |
Retroviruses and ME | (Professor Greg Towers) |
Pathogen Discovery | (Professor Jonas Blomberg) |
Gut Microbiota and ME | (Professor Simon Carding) |
Chaired Discussions | (Dr Ian Gibson/Professor Hugh Perry) |
Experience of Rituximab in ME/CFS and present a case for extending clinical trials as per Norwegian protocols or other parallel trials |
(Dr Oystein Fluge/ Professor Olav Mella) |
Rituximab in autoimmune diseases | (Dr Jo Cambridge) |
Update on immunological derangement that may dovetail with the Fluge et al findings. | (Dr Don Staines) |
Screening NK-, B- and T-cell phenotype and function in patients suffering from ME | (Dr Julià Blanco) |
Chaired Discussions | (Dr Ian Gibson/Professor Hugh Perry) |
ANS studies | (Professor Julia Newton) |
FDA Meeting outcome /Treatment with Vistide | (Dr Dan Peterson) |
OMI MERIT Strategy | (Dr Andy Kogelnik) |
Chaired Discussions | (Dr Ian Gibson/Professor Hugh Perry) |
Funding Possibilities | |
Ways to Continue Collaboration and Discovery | |
Chaired Discussions | (Dr Ian Gibson/Professor Hugh Perry) |
Closing Summary and future directions | (Ian Gibson/Hugh Perry/IIME) |
Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 2 - 30-31st May 2012
BRMEC2
BRMEC2 Research Meeting London, 2012
To raise awareness of ME, and promote collaboration, innovation and foundations for a clearer strategy of biomedical research into ME, Invest in ME has joined with the Alison Hunter Memorial Foundation of Australia - in cooperation with Bond University and University of East Anglia - to establish a Clinical Autoimmunity Working Group which met in London on 30-31st May 2012.

Kathleen McCall
Chairman Invest in ME
There is an urgent need for a coordinated strategy of biomedical research into myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME).
Good quality collaborative research efforts lead to understanding of the disease and better patient care and education of health care professionals.
The approach to treating ME must reflect the latest biomedical research evidence and ME needs to be accepted as a mainstream disease requiring major attention
from the medical profession and research institutions.
Patients need access to knowledgeable ME consultants who can make correct diagnoses using proper guidelines and need to understand the disease in its all phases.
Invest in ME is a UK charity established in 2006 by ME patients and parents of children with ME.
The charity was set up with the objectives of making a change in how ME is perceived and treated in the media, by health departments and by healthcare professionals.
Our efforts are focused on setting up a UK Centre of Excellence which will provide proper examinations and diagnosis for ME patients and initiate a coordinated
strategy of biomedical research into ME in order to find treatment(s) and cure(s).
Christine Hunter AM
Alison Hunter Memorial Foundation
People with ME face enormous obstacles to access health care. Among the impediments over past decades has been research which has shifted emphasis to fatigue and fatigue states with scant regard for the myriad yet distinguishing neurological, autonomic, and gastrointestinal features of ME. Semantics and biased attributions continue to deny the severely ill, both child and adult, the right to care which addresses their acute and chronic medical needs without fear. The Alison Hunter Memorial Foundation was established in 1998 through the initiative of the Public Interest Advocacy Centre, Sydney. The Foundation has a primary interest in the medical, legal and social needs of people with ME and the clinical documentation of severity. The Foundation supports biomedical research.
INTERNATIONAL SCIENTISTS EXPLORE AUTOIMMUNITY IN MYALGIC ENCEPHALOMYELITIS/CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME
Wednesday 30th Thursday 31 May 2012, LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM
Medical and scientific experts from around the world convened in London on 30 and 31 May to discuss recent scientific developments in understanding myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS).
Co-Chair of the clinical autoimmunity working group for ME/CFS, public health physician Dr Don Staines stated ‘The recent discovery from researchers in Norway that an anti- CD20 B cell- depleting drug had a marked benefit in the treatment of ME/CFS has sent a clear message to scientists and medical practitioners around the world that this disease may have an autoimmune origin'.
While the clinicians who made the discovery, Dr Oystein Fluge and Dr Olav Mella and co-workers remain guarded in drawing unwarranted conclusions from the study published in PLoS late last year, further studies are now being planned in the hope of extending the study to a number of clinical sites and to increase the number of patients in the studies.
Dr Staines said �The findings of Drs Fluge and Mella and their co-workers are consistent with theories previously published that ME/CFS may be an autoimmune disease. Despite compelling evidence that this disease is linked epidemiologically to infection and the disorder possibly being a post-infection disturbance of the immune system, little funding has gone into studies of autoimmunity. This is clearly a multi-system illness which has been badly managed in terms of the research agenda.'
Experts who will attend the meeting include Professor Noel Rose, Director of Autoimmune Disease Research at Johns Hopkins Hospital (USA), Professor Stephen Miller (USA), Dr Mario Delgado (Spain) and Professor Hugh Perry, the chairman of the UK Medical Research Council Neurosciences and Mental Health Board. Immunological discoveries which may serve to act as biomarkers for ME/CFS will be presented by Dr Sonya Marshall-Gradisnik, Bond University, Australia.
Alison Hunter Memorial Foundation chunter@ahmf.org +61 2 99586285 Invest in ME info@investinme.org 07759 349743
WELCOME ADDRESS: DAME BRIDGET OGILVIE, AC DBE FRS
CONVENORS
BOND UNIVERSITY, Population Health and Neuroimmunology Research Unit, Faculty of Health Sciences and Medicine, Gold Coast Australia
UNIVERSITY OF EAST ANGLIA, Biomedical Research Centre, Faculty of Science, Norwich, United Kingdom
GRIFFITH UNIVERSITY, School of Medical Science, Griffith Health Institute, Gold Coast, Australia
ALISON HUNTER MEMORIAL FOUNDATION, AUSTRALIA
INVEST IN ME, UNITED KINGDOM
PARTICIPANTS
- Dr Amolak Bansal MD
- Dr. James N Baraniuk MD
- Dr Monica Carson PhD
- Professor Simon Carding PhD
- Dr Abhijit Chaudhuri MD PhD
- Dr Mario Delgado PhD
- Dr Oystein Fluge MD PhD
- Dr Ian Gibson PhD
- Dr Konstance Knox PhD
- Dr Andreas Kogelnik MD PhD
- Dr Richard Kwiatek MBBS FRACP
- Professor Stephen D. Miller PhD
- Dr Sonya Marshall-Gradisnik PhD
- Professor Olav Mella MD PhD
- Dame Bridget Ogilvie AC, DBE, FRS
- Professor Hugh Perry PhD
- Dr Daniel Peterson MD
- Professor Noel Rose MD PhD
- Dr Katherine Rowe MD MBBS FRACP MPH DipEd
- Dr Rosamund Vallings MD
- Professor Tom Wileman PhD
BRMEC2 - CAWG Day 2 | |
---|---|
Overview/summary of previous day Objectives of DAY 2 | Tom Wileman PhD Don Staines MBBS MPH |
Developments in neuropathology | Hugh Perry PhD Professor University of Southampton Experimental Neuropathology Centre for Biological Sciences Southampton UK |
MRI evidence: Microvascular changes in CNS | Richard Kwiatek MBBS FRACP Lyell McEwin Hospital Senior Visiting Medical Specialist in Rheumatology Adelaide Australia |
Genetics and informatics | Andy Kogelnik MD PhD Director Open Medicine Institute Mountain View CA USA |
Plenary session | Chair: Ian Gibson PhD |
Lessons from neuropathology of ME/CFS | Abhijit Chaudhuri DM MD PhD FACP FRCP Glasg FRCP Lond Senior Consultant Neurologist Queen's Hospital Romford Essex Centre for Neurological Sciences UK |
Plenary Session: Open discussion: Collaboration strategies which might target research agencies such as NIH (US), NHMRC (Aus), MRC (UK). Consider developing an overarching strategic approach | Chair: Ian Gibson PhD |
Summary and future directions | Chair: Ian Gibson PhD |
Acknowledgements and Close | Invest in ME / Alison Hunter Memorial Foundation |
Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium 1 - 2011
BRMEC1
BRMEC1 Research Meeting London, 2011
In May 2011, during the IIMEC6 conference weekend events, the charity included a new IiME idea - the 'Corridor Conference' - with clinicians and researchers discussing ways to collaborate, discuss issues and generally to progress knowledge and opportunities for research.
Thus was born the Invest in ME Biomedical Research into ME Colloquium - an event where researchers, and
clinicians, from around the world, could cooperate,
share experiences and ideas and form future collaborations
which would help overcome the lack of funding being given to biomedical research into ME by those bodies responsible for granting funding.
In this way Invest in ME sought to facilitate the type of high-quality research which we feel is the foundation for finding treatments and cures for ME
from Ros Vallings' IIMEC8 conference report
"...top researchers who were presenting at the conference, and a few others who were attending, were gathered together to discuss their current research and to look at opportunities for ongoing collaboration. This was a 'closed' meeting, but I was lucky to be able to go along as an observer. Much of the research discussed was embargoed for any mention here, as is still awaiting publication. However we were fortunate to have a fascinating 30 minute talk from Professor Burnstock on his theories and research on purine signalling. This talk was repeated the following day at the conference (see below). I was glad to be able to hear it twice as it was complex biochemically. This could have much relevance in ME/CFS. All the researchers were keen to have ongoing contact with a view to collaboration."

The Invest in ME Research International ME Conferences
14 years of researchers, clinicians and patients interacting
More details of the Invest in ME Research conferences can be found on the current IIMEC* conference page.
Dr Eleanor Riley

Professor of Immunology, LSHTM, UK
Professor Eleanor Riley BSc BVSc PhD FSB FMedSci
Eleanor Riley graduated from Bristol University with degrees in Cellular Pathology and Veterinary Science. After an internship in Veterinary Pathology at Cornell University (USA) she studied for a PhD in immunology and parasitology in the Department of Veterinary Pathology at the University of Liverpool. She began working on the immunology of malaria in 1985, as a member of the senior scientific staff at the Medical Research Council Laboratories in The Gambia, West Africa. In 1990, Eleanor moved to the University of Edinburgh as a Wellcome Trust Senior Research Fellow. Eleanor moved to the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in October 1998 where she is Professor of Infectious Disease Immunology. Eleanor is currently Chair of the BBSRC Bioscience for Health Strategy Advisory Panel and Deputy Chair of the MRC Infections and Immunity Board.Other Links
Dr Mike Murphy

Programme Leader, MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit, Cambridge
Dr Mike Murphy
EDUCATION & EMPLOYMENT1980-1984 BA in Chemistry, first class honours, first in class, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland
1984-1987 PhD, Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, UK
1988 Associate Research Scientist, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York
1989 Teacher with Voluntary Services Overseas (London) in Zimbabwe
1990-1992 Lecturer, Biochemistry Department, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland
1992-2001 Lecturer/Senior Lecturer/Associate Professor, Biochemistry Department, University of Otago, New Zealand
1999 Sabbatical Visitor, Biozentrum, University of Basel, Switzerland
1999 Sabbatical Visitor, University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA
2000-2001 Associate Dean for Research, Otago School of Medical Sciences
2001-present Programme Leader, MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit, Cambridge, UK AWARDS & HONOURS 1982 C Walter Jones Prize in Organic Chemistry
1982-1987 Foundation Scholarship
1984 Cocker Medal for Experimental Chemistry
1984-1987 Open Research Studentship, Peterhouse, University of Cambridge
2000 Applied Biosystems Medal, NZ Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
2000 Research Medal of the New Zealand Association of Scientists
2001-present Honorary Fellow, Depts of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Otago
2008 The Nathan O. Kaplan Lecturer, University of California, San Diego
2012 Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand (Hon FRSNZ)
2016 Keilin Memorial Lecture and Medal EDITORIAL BOARDS
2003-present Biochemical Journal: Deputy chair (2007-), Editorial board (2003-)
1999-2014 Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics: Editorial board
2009-2011 Current Opinion in Investigational New Drugs: Editorial board
2012-present Free Radical Biology and Medicine: Editorial board
2002-present FEBS Journal: Editorial advisory panel
2013-present Redox Biology: Editorial board
2013-present Redox Report: Editorial board
2010-present Free Radical Research: Editorial board
2003–2007 Biochemical Society Theme Panel III (Bioenergetics and Metabolism)
2001-present Scientific Advisory Board, Antipodean Pharmaceuticals, Auckland and San Francisco
2010-2013 Telethon Italy, Scientific Committee
2009-2011 Buck Institute for Aging Research, external advisory board for the U54 Interdisciplinary Research Center
PATENTS
Mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith, United States Patent US 6,331,532.
Mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith, United States Patent US 6,984,636.
Mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith, Australian Patent AU 763179.
Mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith, New Zealand Patent NZ 505352.
Mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith, United States Patent US 7,109,189.
Mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith, New Zealand Patent NZ 538371.
Triphenylphosphonium thionitrite nitric oxide donors, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith European Patent EP2066680.
Triphenylphosphonium thionitrite nitric oxide donors, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith. Canadian Patent CA 2664744.
Triphenylphosphonium thionitrite nitric oxide donors, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J. Smith. United States Patent US 12/732,909.
Mitoquinone derivatives used as mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P. Murphy and Robin A. J Smith, United States patent US 7,888,334.
Mitochondrially targeted antioxidants, Michael P Murphy and Robin A. J Smith, Canadian Patent CA 2311318
Other Links
Fane Mensah

Research Assistant; Inflammation; Div of Medicine; Faculty of Medical Sciences, UCL, UK
Fane Mensah
Other Links
Dr Travis Craddock

Assistant professor of Psychology, Computer Science and Medicine, Institute for Neuro Immune Medicine, Nova Southeastern University, Miami, USA
Dr Travis Craddock
Travis Craddock, Ph.D. is an assistant professor of Psychology, Computer Science and Medicine applying systems biology and biophysics methods towards the purpose of identifying novel treatments for complex chronic illness involving neuroinflammation. His postdoctoral work was conducted under the supervision of Gordon Broderick, Ph.D., in the Broderick Laboratory for Clinical Systems Biology in the Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry at the University of Alberta. His work with Gordon Broderick, Ph.D., focused on using a theory driven systems biology approach to investigate neuroendocrine-immune interaction dynamics in neuroinflammation and its relation complex diseases such as Gulf War Illness, and chronic fatigue syndrome. This work was funded by the U.S. Department of Defense.
He received his BSc. in co-op physics from the University of Guelph and went on to finish a M.Sc. and Ph.D. in the field of biophysics at the University of Alberta under the supervision of Jack Tuszynski, Ph.D. His graduate research activities focused on subneural biomolecular information processing, and nanoscale neuroscience descriptions of memory, consciousness and cognitive dysfunction in neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease.
Other Links
Dr Chris Armstrong

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Dr Chris Armstrong
Other Links
Dr Ingrid Rekeland

Neurology, Rheumatology, Clinical Immunology, Haukeland University Hospital , Bergen, Norway
Dr Ingrid Gurvin Rekeland
Other Links
Dr Lubov Nathanson

Genetics, Molecular Biology, Bioinformatics, Nova Southeastern University , Florida, USA
Dr Lubov Nathanson
Other Links
Professor Ola Didrik Saugstad

Professor - Paediatric Research Institute, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Norway
Professor Ola Didrik Saugstad is a Norwegian pediatrician and neonatologist noted for his research on resuscitation of newborn children and his contribution to reduce child mortality.[2] Since 1991, he has been Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Oslo and Director of the Department of Pediatric Research at Oslo University Hospital, Rikshospitalet
Saugstad received the 2012 Nordic Medical Prize, is a member of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters and became a Knight First Class of the Order of St. Olav in 2010.
Other Links
Dr Asgeir Lande

Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Norway
Dr Asgeir Lande
Other Links
Dr Katarina Lien

University of Oslo, Norway
Dr Katarina Lien graduated from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo in 2000. I have clinical experience from primary care and psychiatry, and started working at the CFS/ME Centre at Oslo University Hospital in 2011.
She is particularly interested in pathophysiological mechanisms in chronic diseases.
In 2012 she received funding from The Norwegian Directorate of Health and The National Advisory Unit on CFS/ME, in order to gain experience on the use of CPET in patients with CFS/ME.
Currently, she is holding a research grant from the Norwegian ExtraFoundation for Health and Rehabilitation for the Ph.D. project “Cardiopulmonary exercise testing in patients with CFS/ME”.
She has been involved in the planning and implementation of the Rituximab trial RituxME, and is the local Principal Investigator at the CFS/ME Centre, Oslo University Hospital.
She is also engaged in CFS/ME patient education and information, and is a member of the Norwegian ME Association Scientific Advisory Board.
Other Links
- Norges ME Forening Presentations: IACFS/ME Biennial Conference. October 2016. International Association for CFS/ME. Fort Lauderdale, Florida: Lien K, Johansen B, Veierød MB, Haslestad AS, Melsom MN, Kardel KR, Iversen PO. “Blood lactate increases more rapidly after a previous exercise challenge in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME) than in healthy subjects” (manuscript in preparation). Publications: 1. Fluge, O., O. Mella, O. Bruland, K. Risa, S. E. Dyrstad, K. Alme, I. G. Rekeland, D. Sapkota, G. V. Rosland, A. Fossa, I. Ktoridou-Valen, S. Lunde, K. Sorland, K. Lien, I. Herder, H. Thurmer, M. E. Gotaas, K. A. Baranowska, L. M. Bohnen, C. Schafer, A. McCann, K. Sommerfelt, L. Helgeland, P. M. Ueland, O. Dahl and K. J. Tronstad (2016). "Metabolic profiling indicates impaired pyruvate dehydrogenase function in myalgic encephalopathy/chronic fatigue syndrome." JCI Insight 1(21): e89376.
Professor Warren Tate

University of Otago, New Zealand
Professor Warren Tate from University of Otago in New Zealand - is an internationally respected biochemist, winner of the Royal Society of New Zealand's top science honour - the 2010 Rutherford Medal, and was also named a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit. His honour citation noted that Professor Tate was a molecular biologist, whose research had "revolutionised understanding" of how proteins were synthesised in living cells. His research had shown how proteins contributed to memory formation and neurological disease, and had important implications for HIV, Alzheimer's and chronic fatigue syndrome. Professor Tate is a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand and of the New Zealand Institute of Chemistry. He has been a Fellow of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation of Germany, and an International Research Scholar of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute of the United States.
Other Links
Assistant Professor Petter Brodin

Karolinska Institutet, Sweden
Assistant Professor Petter Brodin's team at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden - is aiming to understand human immune system variation in health and disease, and understand the factors that shape human immune systems.
Other interests are in defining better metrics of immune system health and develoingp methods for better immune system analyses in human patients.
As a physician at the department of pediatrics at the Karolinska University Hospital, he has a particular interest in understanding when and how human immune systems are shaped early in life, and the influences by environmental exposures such as the microbiome, infections, vaccines, nutritional components etc in this process.
His team is firmly convinced that the way to understand human immune systems and their variation,
is to analyse all system components simultaneously and relathionships between these taken into account.
This have recently been made possible with the development of novel high-dimensional methods operating at single-cell resolution, such as Mass cytometry and scRNA-seq.
To analyze human immune systems at the systems-level, his team is developing novel experimental methods and algorithms for analyses.
Other Links
Contact Invest in ME Research
Contact Us
Get in Touch
Please contact us by email and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
Thank you for your interest in the charity.
The Office
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Research
IIMER are facilitating a strategy of biomedical research into ME.
The charity is funding important high-quality research projects for ME in the UK with international collaboration.
Currently the main hub of research is at Quadram Institute Bioscience and University of East Anglia )
in the Norwich Research Park and we have funded research at UCL.
These projects involve a gut microbiota project in Norwich and B cell research
in London.
Research Colloquiums
In addition to the International ME Conference the charity also organises an annual
International Research Colloquium which attracts researchers from around the world in
order to discuss experiences and open up collaborations in order to find answers for this disease.
The charity has also initiated the Thinking the Future network for young/early career researchers and organises an annual conference
to bring new talent into the field.
Centre of Excellence for ME
Translational biomedical research - an iterative feedback of information between the basic and clinical research domains in order to accelerate knowledge translation from lab to bedside and back to lab again - allows translation of findings in basic research more quickly and efficiently into medical practice to produce more meaningful health outcomes and facilitate the sharing of repositories and research-based facilities and laboratories. This is the model IiMER are attempting to promote in the development of a UL/European Centre of Excellence for ME based in Norwich.
European Collaboration
Invest in ME Research is one of the founder members of the European ME Alliance (EMEA) – a grouping of charities and patient organisations working together across Europe. Now fifteen European countries collaborating.
European Initiatives
In order to expedite research and clinical expertise for ME the charity has initiated the European ME Clinicians Council and the European ME Research Group to bring together the best European to work together and form credible and productive biomedical research strategies which will provide the best and quickest route for possible treatment(s)/cure(s) for this disease.
Let's Do It For ME
Let's do it for ME! is a patient-driven campaign to raise awareness and vital funds for a UK centre of excellence for translational biomedical ME research, clinical assessment, diagnosis and treatment for patients, training and information for healthcare staff, based around the Norwich Research Park in the UK and aiming to work collaboratively with international biomedical researchers.