OMF BioQuest: Welcome to the Future
Email interview with OMF's CEO Linda Tannenbaum about the largest #MECFS Biomarker Study
Copyright 2025 Andrea Martell. All Rights Reserved.
Dear Readers,
On December 12th, 2024, Linda Tannenbaum, CEO of Open Medicine Foundation, announced that their latest biomarker study had received $800,000 dollars of a total $2.4 Million needed to test 10,000 proteins and metabolites in 1200 samples with the goal of a future 5-20 biomarker panel that could identify Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) subsets.
Open Medicine Foundation has funded 11 diagnostic biomarker studies so far and has been a driving force behind the Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) Biomarker race.
Due to Severe ME/CFS I cannot speak, so I could not do an audio interview, but Linda Tannenbaum was kind enough to answer the questions I had about BioQuest. Linda answered my questions right away, but due to a very steep December Slide, I was unable to bring the answers to you until now. I came up with my questions by observing your questions online, and others came from my own curiosity about the science of ME/CFS biomarkers.
Question 1
Andrea Martell : Thank you for taking this interview Linda. Can you tell our readers why you think a diagnostic blood test is important for ME/CFS patients? Why should a ME/CFS diagnostic test be a high priority for funding and advocacy?
CEO Linda Tannenbaum: A diagnostic blood test for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is crucial for improving patient care, validating the disease, and advancing research towards effective treatments, and ultimately a cure and prevention.
A diagnostic blood test for ME/CFS is the highest priority because it would transform the landscape of diagnosis, treatment, and research for this debilitating condition, offering hope and improved quality of life for millions of patients worldwide.
Question 2
Andrea Martell: I don’t think ME/CFS patients have ever seen a large-scale diagnostic biomarker study like BioQuest. Can you tell us what previous scientific findings or technological changes led to the decision to analyze 1200 samples for 10,000 proteins and metabolites?
CEO Linda Tannenbaum: The decision to analyze 1,200 samples for 10,000 proteins and metabolites in the context of ME/CFS research is rooted in several key scientific findings and technological advancements:
1. Advancements in Omics Technologies: Recent developments in proteomics and metabolomics have significantly enhanced our ability to analyze large numbers of proteins and metabolites simultaneously.
These technologies allow for high-throughput, comprehensive profiling of biological samples, providing a detailed snapshot of the molecular changes associated with ME/CFS.
2. Understanding Complex Diseases: Previous ME/CFS research has highlighted the need to examine a wide array of biological markers to understand its underlying mechanisms. By analyzing a broad spectrum of proteins and metabolites, researchers can identify potential biomarkers and pathways involved in the disease.
3. Previous Biomarker Research: Earlier studies have identified specific proteins and metabolites that may be altered in ME/CFS patients. These findings have laid the groundwork for more extensive investigations, encouraging researchers to expand their analyses to capture a more comprehensive picture of the disease.
4. Data-Driven Insights: The integration of large datasets from omics studies has become more feasible with advances in computational biology and bioinformatics. This allows researchers to handle and interpret complex data, uncovering patterns and associations that were previously difficult to detect.
5. Personalized Medicine Approach: The shift towards personalized medicine emphasizes the need to understand individual variability in disease presentation and response to treatment. By analyzing a wide range of proteins and metabolites, researchers aim to identify specific biomarkers that could lead to more personalized diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for ME/CFS patients.
Question 3
Andrea Martell : There are several ME/CFS diagnostic blood test studies ongoing right now that are funded by OMF, other ME/CFS charities, with 2 recent entries by the NIH, can you tell us how ME/CFS BioQuest distinguishes itself from the other potential diagnostic blood test studies in the ME/CFS diagnostic biomarker race?
CEO Linda Tannenbaum: This will be the largest Biomarkers study of its kind for ME/CFS samples tested on the same platforms to compare to other diseases tested in the same platforms. The data will compliment other data that has been collected from other studies and platforms
Question 4
Andrea Martell : Can you tell our readers what technologies have been chosen to measure 10,000 proteins and metabolites in plasma?
CEO Linda Tannenbaum: To be determined. These are not finalized yet.
Question 5
Andrea Martell: Open Medicine Foundation has done a number of small studies in diagnostic biomarkers including the Nanoneedle, MicroRNAs, Raman Spectroscopy, and Red Cell deformability. Can you tell our readers which OMF scientists will be involved in the proteomic and metabolic testing of the 10,000 proteins and metabolites?
CEO Linda Tannenbaum: All of our Directors at our Collaborative Research Centers are involved in this extensive study.
Question 6
Andrea Martell : Patient selection can make or break a ME/CFS study. I think personally that one of the reasons why the Nanoneedle study had such amazing accuracy was that Dr. Rahim Esfandyarpour and Dr. Ron Davis used ME/CFS patients that fit every definition of ME/CFS and were clinically assessed by ME/CFS clinicians with a lot of experience.
How are ME/CFS patients selected at the 2 Repositories that OMF is using for BioQuest? Are the ME/CFS patients chosen based on clinical assessment to ensure the patients entering the BioQuest study meet the strictest objective requirements for an ME/CFS diagnosis? What definitions were used for patient selection? For me, this is the most crucial question of the entire study.
CEO Linda Tannenbaum: The patients will be accessed using the Canadian Consensus Criteria and will have been diagnosed by physicians at Harvard Medical School and Uppsala University. Additional requirements and details are to be determined
Question 7
Andrea Martell: Now that OMF has ⅓ of the funding for BioQuest, can you tell our readers how soon analyzing the first phase of BioQuest samples can begin?
CEO Linda Tannenbaum: We will start working on the initial preparation for this study the first quarter of 2025. We will want to raise money to do the full study of 1200 samples if possible before beginning testing.
Question 8
Andrea Martell : How long will it take to analyze 10,000 proteins in 1200 samples? When can ME/CFS patients expect to see BioQuest reach the Publication stage?
Linda Tannenbaum: We will want to raise enough funding to do the full study of 1200 samples if possible before testing the samples. The timing depends on how soon funding is received. We are ready to roll.
Question 9
Andrea Martell: The proposal mentions turning the future goal of a biomarker signature and assay platform for a prospective study for validation and rapid development into a diagnostic test suitable for a clinical setting. Looking a bit further into the future, when do you envision the prospective study and rapid development of a clinical test occurring? How easily can proteins and metabolites be translated into a clinical test?
Linda Tannenbaum: We won’t know these answers until we see the results. We will want to raise enough funding to do the full study of 1200 samples and analyze the results before we have answers of a timeline. We hope to raise funding and proceed as fast as possible.
Question 10
Andrea Martell: Many of our readers may not know that a clinical diagnostic blood test will require FDA approval. When do you expect BioQuest will be ready for a meeting with FDA about future approval for this ME/CFS diagnostic blood test?
Linda Tannenbaum: This will be done by the Lab that we eventually work with if we find a biomarker signature from this study. We do not know the timing of this at this point.
Question 11
Andrea Martell : Many ME/CFS and LongCovid patients are quietly waiting for a ME/CFS diagnostic blood test for many reasons. Can you tell us how realistic it is to hope for the FDA to approve an ME/CFS diagnostic blood test within the next few years?
Linda Tannenbaum: We certainly hope that this will happen sooner than later.
Question 12
Andrea Martell: Many ME/CFS patients are lying in their beds, bedbound or housebound, and feeling hopeless about the world of ME/CFS changing in their lifetimes. Open Medicine Foundation’s tagline is “Leading Research. Delivering hope.” Can you tell us how BioQuest can deliver hope? Can you tell us how ME/CFS patients and family members can help fully fund BioQuest?
Linda Tannenbaum: Delivering Hope with BioQuest: In summary, a diagnostic blood test for ME/CFS is high priority because it would transform the landscape of diagnosis, treatment, and research for this debilitating condition, offering HOPE and improved quality of life for millions of patients worldwide.
How patients and family members can help fund BioQuest:
1. Direct Donations, even in small amounts can collectively help include more samples and more testing and accelerate finding a diagnostic signature.
2. Fundraising efforts: Organizing fundraisers on social media or emails with a link to our donate page for birthdays or celebrations makes a collective effort to fund this.
3. Monthly donations add up and help fund the additional phases as we move forward.
Andrea Martell: Linda Tannenbaum, thank you so much for this interview! I appreciate you taking your valuable time to answer our questions about BioQuest.
Thank you also to you dear readers for joining me in this exploration and discovery of ME/CFS diagnostic biomarkers.
Copyright 2025 Andrea Martell. All Rights Reserved.
Fantastic questions and really hope spending answers! Thank you!