Interview with Dr. Resia Pretorius: LongCovid microclots (spike protein, apheresis + other topics)

Dr. Resia Pretorius is both the Department Head and a Research Professor in the Physiological Sciences Department, Faculty of Science at Stellenbosch University in South Africa. Her team has used super-resolution and electron microscopy, together with several other methods to identify microclots containing trapped inflammatory molecules in the blood of patients with LongCovid. She has recently partnered with several clinical collaborators to trial if HELP apheresis (a form of blood filtration) can remove these LongCovid microclots and improve patient symptoms. Soon she will be extending her research on blood clotting and possible viral protein-driven platelet hyperactivation to Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME/CFS). Here is a link to Resia and team’s recent paper where you can see images of microclots identified in LongCovid blood: Here is a link to Resia and team’s paper where you can see that platelets (red blood cells) have receptors that recognize a wide range of bacterial, viral and fungal proteins. Sensing such proteins can contribute to platelet hyperactivation and subsequent clotting pathology: Also Apheresis stands for: “Heparin Induced Extracorporeal Lower Density Lipo-Protein (LDL) Precipitation (.) Apheresis System.“