'Long Covid Research Initiative' and Polybio funded to research viral persistence and antiviral treatments

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Dr. Amy Proal, Ph.D - Transforming Diagnosis & Treatment Of Complex Chronic Inflammatory Conditions

Dr. Amy Proal, Ph.D. serves as President & CEO of the PolyBio Research Foundation (https://polybio.org/), and Chief Scientific Officer of the Long Covid Research Initiative (LCRI - https://lc19.org/). In her work with PolyBio Research Foundation and the LCRI, Dr. Proal conceptualizes and coordinates large-scale collaborative research projects among research teams studying infection-associated chronic conditions such as Long Covid, Myalgic Encephalomyelitis / Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) and Long Lyme. Dr. Proal has written multiple review articles that delineate core biological drivers of both the Long Covid and ME/CFS disease processes. She is a regular speaker at infection-associated chronic disease conferences including IACFS/ME, Lyme Mind and The International Congress on Autoimmunity. Dr. Proal holds a Bachelors of Science in biology from Georgetown University and a Ph.D. in microbiology from Murdoch University in Australia. Her work examines the molecular mechanisms by which viral, bacterial, and fungal pathogens dysregulate human gene expression, immunity, and metabolism, and how dysbiosis of the human microbiome, and/or the human virome, can contribute to chronic inflammatory disease processes. As a member of the research team at Autoimmunity Research Foundation, Dr. Proal has authored papers and written book chapters for organizations like the J. Craig Venter Institute and The Autoimmunity Network, and lectured at the NIH and numerous USA/international conferences.
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I'm especially interested in the imaging-related projects —
  • Use of total-body PET imaging to identify deep-tissue SARS-CoV-2 viral reservoirs and T cell responses in patients with Long COVID
  • Evaluation of tissue fibrin accumulation and perfusion in Long COVID, via Fibrin-PET imaging & peripheral blood analysis
  • Innate neuroimmunity and cognitive function in Long COVID
  • Ultrahigh resolution 7-Tesla imaging of structural abnormalities, cerebrospinal fluid flow, and other symptom mechanisms in patients with infection-associated chronic disease
 
https://twitter.com/user/status/1709700433315328109


Confirmed by leading Long Covid researcher @microbeminded2: 1. Long Covid is new & novel 2. Long Covid’s major driver & area of research: SARS persistence 3. ME & LC are not =. Both can be viral persistence, origins/pathogen activity biologically different

Evidence for this Amy Proal claim?

“Leading Long Covid researcher” who has no lab and no academic affiliation.
 
BS from AP. She knows the mechanism!! Prey tell.

"Mechanisms underlying Long COVID are not a mystery," says Dr. Amy Proal PhD, PolyBio's Chief Scientific Officer. "The persistence of SARS-CoV-2 in tissue is a major target for rapid #research and clinical trials."
 
Jaybee00 said:
https://twitter.com/user/status/1719695012835770565


15 million to Polybio. IMO this will be a waste.

“The focus will be the continued study and treatment of #SARS-CoV-2 persistence as a driver of LongCovid.”

For which there is no convincing evidence…..
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OMG 15 million. god these scientists are onto a good thing. In my next life I will become a scientist not a concert pianist (maybe not as I like being a concert pianist lol)
 
Total-body PET imaging to identify deep-tissue SARS-CoV-2 reservoirs in Long COVID

"This study is the first in the world using advanced imaging technologies to identify deep tissue SARS-CoV-2 reservoirs in Long Covid study participants.

Specifically the team is using longitudinal ImmunoPET-CT imaging of radiolabeled SARS-CoV-2-specific monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) to identify SARS-CoV-2 tissue reservoirs in individuals with Long COVID.

Tissue biopsy samples from the lymph node and gut are also being collected from Long COVID study participants undergoing imaging. These tissue samples are being analyzed for SARS-CoV-2 RNA, spike, and nucleocapsid proteins, other chronic viruses (e.g., Epstein-Barr virus and cytomegalovirus), and cellular immune responses. Data collected on the tissue samples will be correlated with the imaging data, so that potential viral reservoirs in study participants can be validated by overlapping methods."

"In this project, the team is taking a monoclonal antibody (a medication that specifically targets the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein wherever it might be in the body) and “tagging” it with a tiny amount of radioactivity (called radiotracers). They then safely inject the tagged monoclonal antibody into participants with Long COVID. The tagged monoclonal antibody diffuses throughout the participants’ bodies, and if it encounters the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, it will selectively bind it. Wherever this binding occurs its tagged radiotracer will become trapped and rapidly decay. This can be detected in 3-dimensions by the PET scanner’s ultra-sensitive camera. The PET scanner camera documents the location of these tagged antibodies, which can be used to infer the location of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in the patients’ tissue. In other words, the PET scanner is able to triangulate the specific location of any SARS-CoV-2 viral reservoir sites within the body."

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