Brain

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Diagram of brain showing Corpus callosum, cerebral cortex, cerebellum, brainsteam, amydala, thalamus, basal ganglia
Diagram of Brain[1] License: CC-BY-4.0

The brain is an organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. The brain is located in the head, usually close to the sensory organs for senses such as vision.The brain and spinal cord make up the central nervous system (CNS).

The brain and spinal cord have their own immune system.[2] Microglia cells are a part of that immune system.[3]

The brain also has its own lymphatic system which links directly to the peripheral immune system.[4]

Injury to the brain or spinal cord, such as those caused by stroke or trauma, result in a considerable weakening of the immune system.[5] 

Brain involvement in ME/CFS[edit | edit source]

Main article: Neurology of ME/CFS

Myalgic Encephalomyelitis: Encephalo refers to the brain.[6][7]

Chronic fatigue syndrome[edit | edit source]

  • 2017, A study by Natelson, et al, showed that:
  • patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) have higher brain ventricular lactate, more abnormal spinal fluids, lower brain glutathione, and reduced cerebral blood flow than controls,
  • psychiatric comorbidity does not influence any of these potential biological markers of CFS,
  • 50% of the patients had more than one of these abnormalities, and
  • a subgroup of CFS patients with brain abnormalities may have an underlying encephalopathy producing their illness.[10]

Microglia[edit | edit source]

Notable studies[edit | edit source]

Brain function characteristics of chronic fatigue syndrome: A task fMRI study (2018) [17]


  • 2018, Neuroinflammation in the Brain of Patients with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome[18]
  • 2018, Hyperintense sensorimotor T1 spin echo MRI is associated with brainstem abnormality in chronic fatigue syndrome[19] (Full Text)
  • 2018, Brain abnormalities in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome: Evaluation by diffusional kurtosis imaging and neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging[20] (Abstract)

Fibromyalgia[edit | edit source]

Main article: Fibromyalgia notable studies

Talks & interviews[edit | edit source]

See also[edit | edit source]

Learn more[edit | edit source]

  • Neuroquant Triage Brain Atrophy Report (MRI)[21] - Provides physicians a quick reference and in-depth look on regional and global brain structure volumes, which could occur as a result of a brain injury or in neurodegenerative disease, by providing volume measurements of 44 brain structures for both the right and left hemisphere, total structure  – all sorted by lobe and region. With a detailed table of intracranial volume and right, left and total values for normative percentile of ICV. Resulting values are automatically compared to gender and age-appropriate reference distribution.
  • 2-Minute Neuroscience: Lobes and Landmarks of the Brain Surface (Lateral View)[22]

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ "The Central Nervous System". OpenStax Biology. September 29, 2018. Retrieved September 29, 2018. Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  2. ↑ "Scientists create new map of brain's immune system". ScienceDaily. February 19, 2019. Retrieved March 31, 2019. Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  3. ↑ "Brain immune system is key to recovery from motor neuron degeneration: Results in study point to new approaches for ALS therapy". ScienceDaily. February 20, 2018. Retrieved March 31, 2019. Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  4. ↑ Stetka, Bret (July 21, 2015). "Important Link between the Brain and Immune System Found". Scientific American. Retrieved March 31, 2019. Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  5. ↑ "An interconnection between the nervous and immune system: Neuroendocrine reflex triggers infections". ScienceDaily. September 29, 2017. Retrieved March 31, 2019. Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  6. ↑ Dellwo, Adrienne (July 23, 2018). "Myalgic Encephalomyelitis: Chronic Fatigue Syndrome's Other Name". Verywell Health. Retrieved August 12, 2018. Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  7. ↑ "encephalo-". TheFreeDictionary.com. Retrieved August 12, 2018.
  8. ↑ Shan, ZY; Kwiatek, R; Burnet, R; Del Fante, P; Staines, DR; Marshall-Gradisnik, SM; Barnden, LR (April 28, 2016), "Progressive brain changes in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome: A longitudinal MRI study", Journal of magnetic resonance imaging: JMRI, doi:10.1002/jmri.25283, PMID 27123773
  9. ↑ Jaime S (May 5, 2016), "Progressive Brain Changes in Patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Are our Brains Starved of Oxygen?", #MEAction
  10. ↑ Natelson, Benjamin; Mao, Xiangling; Stegner, Aaron J; Lange, Gudrun; Vu, Diana; Blate, Michelle; Kang, Guoxin; Soto, Eli; Kapusuz, Tolga; Shungu, Dikoma C (2017), "Multimodal and simultaneous assessments of brain and spinal fluid abnormalities in chronic fatigue syndrome and the effects of psychiatric comorbidity", Journal of the Neurological Sciences, 375: 411-416, doi:10.1016/j.jns.2017.02.046
  11. ↑ Dellwo, Adrienne (February 21, 2018). "Is Something Called Microglia Causing Your Pain & Brain Fog?". Verywell Health. Retrieved August 13, 2018. Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  12. ↑ Puri, B. K.; Counsell, S. J.; Zaman, R.; Main, J.; Collins, A. G.; Hajnal, J. V.; Davey, N. J. (2002). "Relative increase in choline in the occipital cortex in chronic fatigue syndrome". Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica. 106 (3): 224–226. ISSN 0001-690X. PMID 12197861.
  13. ↑ Ferrero, Kimberly; Silver, Mitchell; Cocchetto, Alan; Masliah, Eliezer; Langford, Dianne (2017), "CNS findings in chronic fatigue syndrome and a neuropathological case report", Journal of Investigative Medicine, doi:10.1136/jim-2016-000390
  14. ↑ Finkelmeyer, Andreas; He, Jiabao; Maclachlan, Laura; Watson, Stuart; Gallagher, Peter; Newton, Julia L.; Blamire, Andrew M. (2018), "Grey and white matter differences in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome – A voxel-based morphometry study", NeuroImage: Clinical, 17: 24-30, doi:10.1016/j.nicl.2017.09.024, PMID 29021956
  15. ↑ Staud, Roland; Robinson, Michael E.; Letzen, Janelle E.; Boissoneault, Jeff; Sevel, Landrew S. (August 1, 2018). "Structural brain changes versus self-report: machine-learning classification of chronic fatigue syndrome patients". Experimental Brain Research. 236 (8): 2245–2253. doi:10.1007/s00221-018-5301-8. ISSN 1432-1106. PMID 29846797.
  16. ↑ Zinn, Mark A.; Zinn, Marcie L.; Valencia, Ian; Jason, Leonard A.; Montoya, Jose G. (2018), "Cortical hypoactivation during resting EEG suggests central nervous system pathology in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome", Biological Psychology, 136 (1): 87-99, doi:10.1016/j.biopsycho.2018.05.016
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Shan, Zack Y.; Finegan, Kevin; Bhuta, Sandeep; Ireland, Timothy; Staines, Donald R.; Marshall-Gradisnik, Sonya M.; Barnden, Leighton R. (January 1, 2018). National Centre for Neuroimmunology and Emerging Diseases; Medical Imaging Dept., Gold Coast Hosp. "Brain function characteristics of chronic fatigue syndrome: A task fMRI study". NeuroImage: Clinical. 19: 279–286. doi:10.1016/j.nicl.2018.04.025. ISSN 2213-1582 – via Elsevier.
  18. ↑ Nakatomi, Y; Kuratsune, H; Watanabe, Y (2018), "Neuroinflammation in the Brain of Patients with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome", Brain Nerve, 70 (1): 19-25, doi:10.11477/mf.1416200945, PMID 29348371
  19. ↑ Barnden, Leighton R.; Shan, Zack Y.; Staines, Donald R.; Marshall-Gradisnik, Sonya; Finegan, Kevin; Ireland, Timothy; Bhuta, Sandeep (2018). "Hyperintense sensorimotor T1 spin echo MRI is associated with brainstem abnormality in chronic fatigue syndrome". NeuroImage: Clinical. 20: 102–109. doi:10.1016/j.nicl.2018.07.011.
  20. ↑ Kimura, Yukio; Sato, Noriko; Ota, Miho; Shigemoto, Yoko; Morimoto, Emiko; Enokizono, Mikako; Matsuda, Hiroshi; Shin, Isu; Amano, Keiko (November 14, 2018). "Brain abnormalities in myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome: Evaluation by diffusional kurtosis imaging and neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging". Journal of Magnetic Resonance Imaging. doi:10.1002/jmri.26247. ISSN 1053-1807.
  21. ↑ "Triage Brain Atrophy Report". Cortechs Labs. Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  22. ↑ "2-Minute Neuroscience: Lobes and Landmarks of the Brain Surface (Lateral View)". YouTube. Neuroscientifically Challenged. August 22, 2014. Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)

central nervous system (CNS) - One of the two parts of the human nervous system, the other part being the peripheral nervous system. The central nervous system consists of the brain and spinal cord, while the peripheral nervous system consists of nerves that travel from the central nervous system into the various organs and tissues of the body.

Canadian Consensus Criteria (CCC) - A set of diagnostic criteria used to diagnose ME/CFS, developed by a group of practicing ME/CFS clinicians in 2003. The CCC is often considered to be the most complex criteria, but possibly the most accurate, with the lowest number of patients meeting the criteria. Led to the development of the International Consensus Criteria (ICC) in 2011.

cerebral blood flow (CBF) - the amount of blood that goes through the arterial tree in the brain in a given amount of time

microglia A type of immune cell, called a macrophage, that lives in the brain. For historical reasons, macrophages have different names based on the part of the body that they normally live in. Macrophages that normally live in the blood are called monocytes. Macrophages that normally live in the skin are called Langerhans cells. Macrophages that normally live in the liver are called Kupffer cells. And macrophages that normally live in the central nervous system are called microglia. Microglia were originally classified as glial cells, under the assumption that the cells had a merely structural function, before it was realized that the cells were in fact immune cells. As the "sentinel cells" of the central nervous system, microglia survey their environment for abnormalities such as infection or tissue damage, and then initiate an immune response to fight the infection or repair the tissue damage.

central nervous system (CNS) - One of the two parts of the human nervous system, the other part being the peripheral nervous system. The central nervous system consists of the brain and spinal cord, while the peripheral nervous system consists of nerves that travel from the central nervous system into the various organs and tissues of the body.

myalgic encephalomyelitis (M.E.) - A disease often marked by neurological symptoms, but fatigue is sometimes a symptom as well. Some diagnostic criteria distinguish it from chronic fatigue syndrome, while other diagnostic criteria consider it to be a synonym for chronic fatigue syndrome. A defining characteristic of ME is post-exertional malaise (PEM), or post-exertional neuroimmune exhaustion (PENE), which is a notable exacerbation of symptoms brought on by small exertions. PEM can last for days or weeks. Symptoms can include cognitive impairments, muscle pain (myalgia), trouble remaining upright (orthostatic intolerance), sleep abnormalities, and gastro-intestinal impairments, among others. An estimated 25% of those suffering from ME are housebound or bedbound. The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies ME as a neurological disease.

brainstem Region of the midbrain in adults, includes midbrain, pons, and medulla oblongata and develops.

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