Date of Award
Winter 2025
Language
English
Embargo Period
1-17-2025
Document Type
Master's Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
College/School/Department
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics
Program
Biostatistics
First Advisor
Roxana Moslehi
Committee Members
Roxana Moslehi, Edward Valachovic, Igor Kuznetsov
Keywords
Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS), cytokines, diagnosis, biomarkers, case-control study, unadjusted logistic regression, adjusted logistic regression, interaction analysis, confounding, stratified analysis.
Subject Categories
Biostatistics
Abstract
This study investigated the role of cytokines in Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS), a debilitating multi-system disease with unknown etiology. Using data from a case-control study (60 cases, 61 controls) previously collected by Dr. Roxana Moslehi’s lab, serum levels of 48 cytokines were analyzed. Statistical analyses, including T-tests, Wilcoxon Rank Sum tests, and logistic regression (unadjusted and adjusted for medication use), were performed to identify differences between cases and controls.
Results revealed a statistically significant difference in mean Fractalkine levels between cases and controls (p=0.031). Borderline significant differences were also observed for IL-6 (p=0.046) and MIP-1α (p=0.046). Unadjusted logistic regression showed a significant association between lower Fractalkine levels and ME/CFS (OR=1.422, p=0.037), which remained borderline significant after adjusting for medication (OR=1.448, p=0.0498). In a gender-stratified analysis, higher RANTES levels were significantly associated with a decreased risk of ME/CFS in females (OR=0.376, p=0.047). There is no evidence to suggest there is a significant association between medication use during 24 hours prior to blood draw on case-control status and between gender and case-control status as well.
Lower Fractalkine levels are significantly associated with an increased risk of ME/CFS, even after adjusting for medication. The influence of medication on cytokine associations varied, with some remaining statistically significant and others becoming less so. Higher levels of RANTES were associated with a statistically significant decreased risk of ME/CFS in females only. Future analyses in Dr. Moslehi’s lab will explore gender-cytokine interactions, effect of specific medication categories on ME/CFS, and multiple-testing adjustments to minimize false positives.
License
This work is licensed under the University at Albany Standard Author Agreement.
Recommended Citation
Amaratunga, Navya, "Analysis of Cytokine Data in a Case-Control Study of ME/CFS" (2025). Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present). 91.
https://scholarsarchive.library.albany.edu/etd/91
