title: Low levels of serum acylcarnitine in chronic fatigue syndrome and chronic hepatitis type C, but not seen in other diseases.
abstract: Recently, we found a serum acylcarnitine (ACR) deficiency in Japanese patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). To clarify whether this ACR abnormality is a characteristic of CFS or not, we also studied the levels of serum carnitine in Swedish subjects. Both serum ACR and free carnitine (FCR) levels in normal healthy subjects were quite different between Japanese (n=131) and Swedish people (n=46) (p<0.001). However, it is confirmed that Swedish patients with CFS (n=57) also had serum ACR deficiency (p<0.001). When we studied the levels of serum ACR and FCR in Japanese patients with various kinds of diseases (CFS, hematological malignancies, chronic pancreatitis, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, chronic hepatitis type C, psychiatric diseases), a significant decrease in the levels of serum ACR was only found in patients with CFS and chronic hepatitis type C (p<0.001). Therefore, we concluded that ACR deficiency in serum might be a characteristic abnormality in only certain types of diseases.
authors.affiliation: Hematology and Oncology, Osaka University Medical School, Suita, Osaka 565, Japan.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kuratsune
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yamaguti
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lindh
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Evengard
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Machii
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Matsumura
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Takaishi
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kawata
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Långström
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kanakura
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kitani
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Watanabe
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000818:Animals; D002331:Carnitine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism; D056486:Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury / Q000097:blood; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000097:blood / Q000208:ethnology; D015673:Fatigue Syndrome, Chronic / Q000097:blood* / Q000208:ethnology; D005260:Female; D005688:Galactosamine; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000097:blood* / Q000208:ethnology; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008809:Mice, Inbred C3H; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000097:blood / Q000208:ethnology; D013548:Sweden
chemical_list: C116917:acylcarnitine; D005688:Galactosamine; D002331:Carnitine