PolyBio Research Foundation

9/ Read more about PolyBio’s Impact in our 2025 report: polybio.org/wp-content/u...

8/ live neutrophil immune cell testing. Together, these projects mark a transformative advance: bringing the study of persistent infection and neuroinflammation - the most understudied but important topics in ME/CFS - to the forefront, thus opening pathways to new diagnostics and treatments.

7/To identify if inflammation is tied to other symptoms or biomarkers, patients also undergo other forms of detailed data collection, including a wearable sleep recording device the night before scanning, dynamic pupillometry as a measure of intracranial pressure and neuroautonomic function, and

6/ Gut tissue and blood are being tested for viral persistence, while concurrent imaging maps immune activity across organ systems.

PolyBio is additionally funding a Harvard Medical School study using cutting-edge dual PET-MRI neuroimaging to quantify neuroinflammation in ME/CFS patients.

5/ The UCSF-led project called CHIME (Chronic Infection and Inflammation in ME/CFS) is building a longitudinal biobank of well-characterized patients, with samples shared across PolyBio networks for infectious, immune, and genetic analyses.

4/ Despite the condition's name — which means “painful inflammation of the brain and spinal cord" — no studies have previously used such technology in ME/CFS.

3/ PolyBio also awarded $1M to UCSF to expand the LIINC program into ME/CFS, using tissue biopsy and advanced ImmunoPET-CT imaging to study viral persistence and immune activation in the brain, spinal cord, and bone marrow.

2/ Researchers also found altered cytokine interactions, including disrupted fractalkine and eotaxin pathways, which may drive neuroinflammation and cognitive symptoms.

How PolyBio is driving forward ME/CFS research🧵

In 2025, PolyBio’s cofounders helped identify biomarkers that divide ME/CFS patients into two subgroups. One group had elevated MMPs/cytokines consistent with CNS inflammation; the other showed unique immune correlations linked to joint hypermobility.

2/ Read more about PolyBio’s impact on the field in our annual report: polybio.org/impact-report/

“We sought out Amy & PolyBio because we cannot afford less than the best knowledge & information to help guide our [mAb trials],” said Invivyd chairman Marc Elia. PolyBio has funded 4+ clinical trials & most recently is supporting sample analysis for a RCT of Anktiva in Long Covid.

An outline of a human body divided into 2 halves. The left side is pink and represents cluster 1 of the ME/CFS cohort. There was an increase in MMP1, 2 and 10 in the cerebrospinal fluid. There was an increase in inflammatory cytokines and an observed fractalkine mismatch. There was also an increase in CMV seropositivity. In cluster 2 in blue on the right, there was a decrease in MMPs and inflammatory cytokines. Fractalkine correlated well with MMP2. There is also a higher seropositivity to SARS CoV 2 and parvovirus B19.

PolyBio and WE&ME supported study identifies two distinct ME/CFS subtypes

🧪Collaborative research uncovers immune and biomarker patterns that could help subclassify ME/CFS and guide future treatments.

polybio.org/polybio-and-...

PolyBio’s Spring Symposium is approaching fast—on May 16, watch exciting project updates on clinical trials, tissue pipelines, immune & metabolism findings on infection-associated chronic illnesses.

Sign up now: us02web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

Post-treatment Lyme Disease patients with chronic pain in the US—consider participating in this decentralized study (completely virtual). It’s run via the CoRE clinic under the direction of Drs. David Putrino and Amy Proal @putrinolab.bsky.social @coresinai.bsky.social

“By identifying the proteins that are elevated in affected patients, we’re creating a platform from which to develop diagnostic tools and new targeted therapies,” Dr. Buggert says. “This is especially important since there are no specific biomarkers and treatments for long COVID.”

PolyBio-supported study uncovers plasma signatures associated with long COVID respiratory symptoms - PolyBio Research Foundation Medford MA, April 28, 2025 — A new PolyBio-supported study published today in Nature Immunology sheds light on the biological underpinnings...

Using advanced techniques, the researchers out of the Karolinska Institute and Cardiff University measured thousands of proteins in the blood plasma, which they related to the patients’ symptoms. They also used flow cytometry to conduct immunological analyses. polybio.org/polybio-supp...

The PolyBio-supported study on elevated plasma proteins associated with breathlessness in Long COVID was featured in an article in Technology Networks : www.technologynetworks.com/tn/news/long...

Calling all Long Covid, ME/CFS and Post-Treatment Lyme patients in the Boston area! This PolyBio-supported study is now seeking participants.

Participants must be able to attend an in-person visit at Brigham & Women’s hospital in Boston to participate.

Email dsaadi@mgh.harvard.edu if interested

Flyer for Long Covid clinical trial of low dose rapamycin. Researchers are investigating effects of a 12 week course of low dose Sirolimus (Rapa) bs placebo in adults with Long Covid. You’re eligible if you have a positive test for COVID and a diagnosis of long covid. There are 5 in person visits required over the 6 month study period. There are blood draws, in person meetings, saliva collection and online surveys required. If you’re interested, please email coreresearch@mountsinai.org.

We’re truly excited that the PolyBio supported Low-dose Rapamycin trial is now recruiting in the NYC area.

Interested in learning more? Here’s the full study summary: polybio.org/projects/lon...

6/ This has implications for Alzheimer’s & other diseases tied to persistent viral/bacterial infections.

5/ allowing for extremely high resolution images of spike protein in tissue to be produced. If the project team can successfully image SARS-CoV-2 reservoirs in patients with long COVID, they can potentially radiolabel therapeutics that target other pathogens implicated in chronic disease.

3 side by side full body images from the PET scanner lit up across various organs, especially the GI tract, to show active viral replication.

4/ In the UCSF project, the EXPLORER PET scanner used in this study is the first FDA-approved full-body PET scanner & was created by two members of the project team. It has 40x the sensitivity of commercial scanners,

3/ It will be great to compare findings between the two imaging teams as both projects continue to move forward.

A pink bone with blue + red bone marrow to the right of a zoomed in microscope image of cells with red dots to depict viral persistence. To the left of the circular image of cells is a pink and purple gastrointestinal tract. Directly above the cells is a pink neuron with several branches.

2/ This PolyBio-supported project at UCSF is working to develop similar imaging methods. The goal is to detect spike protein associated with SARS-CoV-2 reservoirs throughout the body & brains of long COVID patients: polybio.org/projects/use...

Whole-body visualization of SARS-CoV-2 biodistribution in vivo by immunoPET imaging in non-human primates - Nature Communications There are limited approaches to monitor virus spread in vivo. Here, the authors report PET/CT-based in vivo imaging to track SARS-CoV-2 biodistribution in a COVID-19 non-human primate model using a ra...

BREAKING: Development of a spike protein-specific radiolabeled antibody used with PET imaging shows presence of spike in brain & lungs of macaque monkeys 3 months post-COVID; provides new viral reservoir detection opportunity for long COVID: www.nature.com/articles/s41...

YouTube video by PolyBio Research Foundation PolyBio Fall 2024 Symposium

3/ Dr. Chan’s talk was a part of PolyBio’s Fall 2024 symposium. Watch the full presentation here (3:34:07): youtu.be/nzwH556GsuU?...

Impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection on Alzheimer's and neurodegenerative disease - PolyBio Research Foundation Project summary: The project will determine if live SARS-CoV-2 infection of human brain cell models leads to protein formation and gene...

2/ PolyBio is supporting this project that will determine if SCV2 infection of human brain cell models changes protein/gene expression, leading to AD and Parkinson’s. The team will measure how coinfection with HSV1 exacerbates neurodegenerative disease.

Dr. Rigel Chan is investigating SARS-CoV-2’s impact on the development of #Alzheimers. His work has found that S protein levels in cells aren’t associated with AD, “but exposure to antigens like Spike may alter the conditions such that [patients] become more susceptible to HSV1.”

COVID-19 Post Sudden Death Autopsy Study - PolyBio Research Foundation Project summary: The project is expanding the one-of-a-kind POstmortemSystematic InvesTigation of Sudden Cardiac Death (POST SCD) autopsy study to examine key...

4/ Read the full study summary here: polybio.org/projects/cov...

3/ 🦠What is the prevalence of persistent tissue SCV2 in deaths supposedly unrelated to COVID-19?
🦠What are the transcriptional/proteomic host responses in various tissue regions & cell types in acute vs. convalescent COVID-19, & how do these responses correlate with potential SARS-CoV-2 persistence?