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Thrombus Causer Discovered After AstraZeneca Vaccine

A team of scientists from the United Kingdom and the United States believe they have discovered the trigger for the development of unusual thrombi in some patients after receiving the Oxford-AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine. The team, which publishes its findings in the U.S. journal Science Advances, detected how a protein in the blood is attracted to […]

Por Allan Brito
Thrombus Causer Discovered After AstraZeneca Vaccine
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A team of scientists from the United Kingdom and the United States believe they have discovered the trigger for the development of unusual thrombi in some patients after receiving the Oxford-AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine.

The team, which publishes its findings in the U.S. journal Science Advances, detected how a protein in the blood is attracted to a key component of the vaccine, which in turn instigates an immune system reaction that, in combination with other factors yet to be determined, can lead to so-called immune thrombocytopenia (ITP), reported Listindiario.

The ‘Vaxzevria’ vaccine, developed by the English University of Oxford with the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, contains an adenovirus (specifically, a common chimpanzee cold virus), unlike other preparations that use “messenger RNA” technology, such as those of Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna.

Previous studies have found that people who contract thrombi after receiving AstraZeneca’s vaccine generate unusual antibodies that attack the blood’s platelet factor 4 protein.

According to the research released today, the adenovirus, which acts as a messenger in the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine, may be linked to the development of thrombi because its outer surface attracts the protein.

In some cases, the immune system mistakes platelet factor 4 for the virus and generates antibodies to attack it. As the antibodies join with the protein, thrombi would develop, the research indicates.

Although the vaccines are injected into the muscle, they can sometimes leak into the bloodstream, where the process could start, it notes.

“IPT only occurs in extremely rare cases because a complex chain of events must occur to trigger this super-rare side effect,” says one of the authors, Alan Parker of Cardiff University.

“Our data confirm that platelet factor 4 can bind to adenoviruses, an important step in triggering the underlying mechanism in IPT. Establishing the whole mechanism could help prevent and treat this condition,” he added.

Thrombus formation in a minority of patients has led many governments to limit administration of AstraZeneca’s vaccine, which is nevertheless the cheapest and most easily transported.

A spokesman for the pharmaceutical company, whose experts participated in the study, said that, “although the research is not definitive, it offers interesting data” and the company will take them into account in its efforts “to eliminate this rare side effect”.

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