Today we are excited to share landmark new findings from the LOCOME project.
Led by PrecisionLife – in collaboration with Action for ME, lived experience representatives, and the University of Edinburgh – this study has identified more than 250 genes that may increase the risk of developing ME. These results point to four key biological areas that could be involved in the disease.
The study also found some overlap with long Covid biology, with 76 genes linked to both conditions.
Taken together, these results represent a significant step toward building a more precise biological map of ME – one that we hope researchers will continue to refine and expand. They also highlight several possible opportunities to repurpose existing medicines in a more personalised way in the future.
Sonya Chowdhury, CEO of Action for ME, said: “These findings offer further hope to people with ME around the world. For decades, people affected by ME have lacked recognition, access to proper diagnosis and effective treatments. PrecisionLife’s results represent a major step forward in understanding the biology of the disease and provide real opportunities for targeted therapies to move into clinical testing. We are proud that DecodeME has helped pave the way for this progress, and we will continue to champion research that delivers meaningful benefits for the community.”
LOCOME’s findings come from a method called ‘combinatorial analysis’, which looks at groups of genes that act together rather than examining each gene individually. This can help identify more genetic associations and reveal patterns that may be important in a complex, multisystem disease like ME.
PrecisonLife identified:
Dr Steve Gardner, CEO of PrecisionLife:
“These results reinforce that ME has a clear biological and genetic basis and is a complex multisystemic disease. ME is highly polygenic and heterogeneous, so no single drug will help everyone. Stratifying patients by the mechanisms that are driving their disease will be essential for predicting who will benefit from which therapies and for developing accurate diagnostic tests. We’re beginning to have this level of insight, and we hope that in the future the genetic biomarkers we’ve identified for existing and new drug repurposing candidates could help make trials with collaborators worldwide more successful.”
Although the Innovate UK-funded LOCOME project worked independently from DecodeME, it was made possible by the data that thousands of DecodeME participants generously provided. We are extremely grateful to everyone who contributed their DNA samples to DecodeME, and to the PPI representatives who helped guide the LOCOME project. We hope researchers across the field continue to make full use of the DecodeME dataset to drive forward new discoveries and deepen our understanding of ME.
Prof Chris Ponting, DecodeME investigator, added: “DecodeME was designed to reveal the complex genetics of ME by providing a dataset of the scale and quality required for robust discovery. PrecisionLife has shown how making such datasets available can quickly generate new insights into ME disease biology.”
The LOCOME results are an exciting early step and point to important patterns, but they do not yet show which genes or pathways directly cause ME. Further research, including studies in the lab (e.g. experiments on blood or cells) and with more diverse groups of people, is essential.
The possible drug targets identified are also at an early stage. Turning them into real treatments will take time, careful testing, and continued collaborative research and funding. Even so, this work provides a strong foundation for future progress.
Through the Genetics Centre of Excellence, the PRIME project, and our wider research partnerships, Action for ME will continue working with scientists, PrecisionLife, and people with lived experience. Our goal is to ensure that findings like these lead to real-world improvements in diagnosis, treatment, and care for people with ME
Now that the LOCOME project has been completed, PrecisionLife hopes to be able to support ME and long COVID projects that have funding, and they are working with several academic and clinical groups around the world to support their grant applications. They are also discussing opportunities for new research with foundations and research funding bodies.
There's still time to register for tomorrow's LOCOME webinar (Friday 5th). You'll be able to hear more about the exciting results, alongside presentations and discussions from PrecisionLife, Action for ME, University of Edinburgh, and PPI representatives.
