Research-funding announcement: Scholarship for young researchers in ME/CFS research at Charité

In January 2026, the first joint funding scholarship from the Lost Voices Foundation (external link) and the ME/CFS Research Foundation will start at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin.

At the International ME/CFS Conference 2025 (link), the foundations agreed to cooperate in supporting young ME/CFS researchers. The ME/CFS Research Foundation is providing the funding for this. The scholarship funding will be administered through the Lost Voices Foundation's scholarship programme.

The first joint scholarship will be awarded to Linus Fock, who is pursuing his doctorate as part of his medical studies in the working group of Prof. Dr. Carmen Scheibenbogen (details in the ME/CFS Research Register) at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin. Linus Fock's doctoral project is entitled "Comparative study of healthy control subjects and patients with ME/CFS using questionnaires, hand grip strength measurement, cognitive testing and laboratory markers".

Project background and objectives:

Biomarker studies on ME/CFS (myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome) have provided a number of important clues about the possible mechanisms of the disease in recent years. In the majority of ME/CFS patients examined, evidence of immune dysregulation with inflammatory markers was found, and in some of the subjects examined, autoantibodies and altered immune cell profiles were also detected. In addition, disturbances in mitochondrial metabolism and blood circulation were detected.

Well-characterised patient and control cohorts (healthy control groups) are of central importance for biomedical research projects. Only by comparing carefully defined healthy controls can disease-specific changes be clearly identified, scientifically sound conclusions be drawn, and diagnostic markers be developed. The aim of the funded doctoral project is to establish and analyse a cohort of 100 healthy subjects for subsequent comparison with ME/CFS patients. 

As part of the funded project, data on health status (medical history, self-reported information), epidemiological data and questionnaires for symptom assessment will be collected from healthy subjects in the same way as for the ME/CFS cohort, and clinical examinations will be carried out (hand strength, cognitive testing using the Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT), blood pressure and pulse measurement while sitting and standing, and laboratory analyses of standard parameters and immunological markers).

The project will start on 1 January 2026 and aims to establish a standardised control cohort of healthy adults over a period of six months. The project results will be published in a scientific publication, which will contribute to the validation and further development of biomarkers for ME/CFS.

Integration into ongoing biomarker research

The data collected from the healthy control cohort through the project will be incorporated into the work of the following research projects, which are being implemented with the participation of Prof. Dr. Scheibenbogen's working group:

• Immune Mechanisms of ME (IMMME) collaborative project:
  Characterisation of the function of G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) autoantibodies as part of the second phase of the joint project (duration 10/2025–09/2027). Details on the first funding phase of IMMME can be found in ME/CFS Research Register
• Characterisation of autoimmune responses for the identification of targets in ME/CFS (CURE-ME) collaborative project: 
  Characterisation of EBV cross-reactive autoantibodies and B cells (duration 01/2025 – 12/2027, details in the ME/CFS Research Register)
• Investigations into vascular dysfunction and reduced perfusion in patients with ME/CFS (VADYS-ME) collaborative project: 
  Analysis of biomarkers for reduced blood flow (duration 01/2025 – 12/2027, details in the ME/CFS Research Register)

Why do we fund this project?

The project to establish a healthy adult control cohort at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin complements our funding of the "HeLP" project to establish a healthy control cohort for children and adolescents at the Munich Chronic Fatigue Centre for Young People (MCFC) at the Technical University of Munich (see project announcement). Both projects meet the objectives defined in our funding strategy (link). Furthermore, there is currently no public funding available for generating comparative data using healthy control subjects. 

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How can you support the work of the ME/CFS Research Foundation?

We are committed to ensuring that the diagnosis, care and treatment of ME/CFS sufferers will one day become the medical and social norm. As the ME/CFS Research Foundation, we focus on biomedical research, which we see as the key to solving these problems (more on this in our research funding strategy and in our half year report summer 2025, which summarises our activities). To do this, we need extensive support from private donors – those affected, relatives, families, friends, associations, schools, networks, companies, initiatives, event organisers and all supporters. And if you are not able to provide direct support, you can share our story and motivate others to help. Because only together can such a feat be achieved.

We fully translate donations and other support into scientifically excellent research, networking and ultimately visible successes, i.e. better ME/CFS diagnostics and therapies. We are happy to work together with other organisations and initiatives - please contact us!

Thank you for your support!