Platelets
I think platelets are really cool and fascinating.
They are kind of like a conductor in the whole wound healing cycle - and they don’t even contain a nucleus (because they aren’t cells)! R
They're pieces of megakaryocytes (MKs) in your bone marrow that go into your blood and are able to help patch up damaged tissue, through cascades of signalling from activation of their receptors. R
Check out this video to understand it’s basics.
When you fight an infection, this is happening on the inside (like how they show it happening on the skin).
Adrenergic Receptors
One of my favorite ones is the adrenergic receptors (a1, a2, a3, b1, b2) on them.
While a1 and b1 are stimulatory, a2 and b2 are inhibitory, it’s not that important for this discussion, as they all work together to make the following happen.
The adrenergic receptors as you guessed can be bound by catecholamines when you're stressed out. R
Normally, adrenergic receptor signalling is good for the endothelial system (via a3), thus improving NOS/redox balance in state, and this is may be why the body is shipping out adrenergic receptor agonizing molecules to the body, as a way to adapt to endothelial dysregulation. R
Since adrenergic receptor agonizing molecules (like catecholamines) are not extra selective, depending on which adrenergic receptor that is activated, vasodilation (of the endothelium smooth muscle), as well as fibrin can be recruited, creating more clotting, which works in positive feedback loop. R R
This is one way why beta blockers work so freaking well, by blocking the beta adrenergic receptor on platelets, thus stoping vasodilation (because you’ve got vascular adaptation issues), slowing down heart rate, and the effect of catecholamines on your system.
It's why some performers take beta blockers before going on stage to perform.
This is also why it's important to get out of a fight or flight state that happens subconsciously, you do not notice a fight or flight state consciously unless you pay attention to it, because those catecholamines continue in this loop, subconsciously.
If you can actively control your subconscious in real-time, you must be some kind of superhuman and would blow Carl Jung's and Sigmund Freud's minds.
I discussed more about this in the Increasing The Variables section.
Activating Adrenergic Receptors
So by activating adrenergic receptors on platelets, the recruitment of other platelets and then fibrin is started. R
https://veteriankey.com/adrenergic-receptor-agonists-and-antagonists/
It's evolutionary helpful for example you were running away from a tiger or whatever and cut yourself up really badly, you quickly patch up so you could continue running.
It’s also beneficial to recruit blood away from the microcapillaries to the major organ systems so you can to fast burst energy mechanisms with fast twitch muscles. So those slow twitch muscles take the hit if this is chronic. R R
What happens in post viral illness is this same recruitment of fibrin after platelets go between tight junctions to protect you from being leaky.
It's like when you get a cut on your hand, you want it to patch itself up so you don't get a secondary infection.
Sticky Platelets and Thrombosis
I think we already discussed this, but when the glycocalyx breaks down platelets stick to the endothelial wall. R
They pile up and this gives you a (minor to major) thrombolytic event.
One of my hypotheses as to why we get this thrombosis is to stop the pathogens (like bacteria, viruses, parasites, etc) from being able to spread to the rest of your tissue, it’s just unfortunate that ends with up you being in hypoxia.
If I would personally had an issue with fibrin and clots, I would make sure to take proteolytic enzymes.
These break down the fibrin in healthy ways.
Proteolytic enzymes include:
Some of my favorite products are Fibrenza and Nephrinol, as well as CellCore's Enzymes (code WrNETza8).
Controlling Adrenergic Activation
It is important to reduce catecholamine binding to adrenergic receptors.
Some methods include:
Autonomic POTS
So you may have guessed that by spiking your adrenaline, binding catecholamines to adrenergic receptors on platelets, you shut off blood supply to microcapllaries via thrombosis, thus Autonomic POTS becomes Vascular POTS due to vascular maladapation.
Really both of these disorders need to be renamed.
Vascular POTS = Vaso-Adapative Disorder (VAD)
Autonomic Pots = Adrenergic-Based VAD (ABVAD)
It took me a really long time to learn this.
Anyway, if you want to learn about structural POTS, I have an old article that needs to be updated about Autonomic and Vascular POTS, which you can read about Structural POTS here.
If You Get An Enlarged Spleen
A lot of people who have post-viral illness, like long-EBV, can get enlarged spleens.
They are usually told to avoid contact sports for months until their spleen gets smaller, and that’s what I was told…
But my spleen never got smaller.
Platelets can be broken down by the spleen, making it work overtime. R
Once improving the damaged tissue inside my body, my spleen was able to calm down.