This research could boost the development of new drugs aimed at preventing the formation of blood clots.
By: Maria Camila Sanchez
November 03, 2023
Recently, researchers have identified the presumed reason why some patients experienced cases of coagulation fatal blood loss after receiving the vaccine against COVID-19.
Previous studies have shown that patients with vaccine-induced thrombocytopenia and immune thrombosis (WHITE) produce antibodies that attach to a protein called platelet factor 4 (PF4) to create a large group of molecules called the immune complex.
After the development of a complex, the platelets and cells of the immune system that cause the disease are activated. coagulation and inflammation, but the exact nature of what the PF4 in this event.
The role of PF4 in blood clot formation
Scientists at the University of Birmingham, funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research and the British Heart Foundation, used blood taken from healthy donors, as well as serum and plasma from patients with WHITEand it has been possible to know for the first time how the PF4 It directly intervenes in the activation of platelets and gives rise to thrombotic events.
By attaching to a receptor called c-Mpl on the surface of platelets, the PF4 triggered the production of the small cells known to cause coagulation.
“The great advances observed in the development of vaccines during the global pandemic Covid-19 became evident after the tragic and rare cases of immune thrombosis induced by vaccines“said Dr Pip Nicolson, clinical associate professor of cardiovascular medicine at the University of Birmingham and senior author of the study.
A light for the use of vaccines in the future
“Although there was vaccines alternatives available to continue providing protection against coronavirus in some countries around the world, understanding the mechanisms underlying these cases is essential to ensure that coronavirus administration technology vaccines can be used with confidence in the future.
For his part, Dr. Richard Buka, Researcher at the Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and main co-author, assured that this research could be the basis for the development of new medications that prevent these events.
“In addition to identifying a new way in which platelets are activated in a potentially fatal way in the WHITEour research has also been able to discover how this mechanism could lead to new drugs to protect against blood clots in the WHITE and blood clots in general.”
Potential drugs aimed at prevention
The research also found that variations of a drug used to treat bone marrow cancers could be developed to protect patients with WHITE from coagulation mortal.
The team used ruxolitinib, a drug used to treat some types of blood cancer, to block the receptor activated by PF4 after the vaccine-induced event. Although they note that the current form of the drug is not suitable for use in patients with WHITEthe team found that blocking the pathway with ruxolitinib slowed platelet aggregation and demonstrates a possible future way to protect patients from blood clots.
Likewise, Dr. Samantha Montague, researcher at the Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences at the University of Birmingham and co-author of the article commented that “it is gratifying that we have been able to identify a new and important biological mechanism while trying to fully understand a new disease. This work allows us “It helps understand more fundamental things about how blood clots form and may also be relevant to other related diseases that are more common.”
Source consulted here.
2023-11-04 01:00:00
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