DANGEROUS blood clotting in patients with Covid-19 may be treatable, thanks to research from scientists at the University of Reading (UoR).

Ongoing research by Professor Jon Gibbins and a team of experts in the Institute of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Research, looks at how Covid-19 is leading to dangerous blood clots in the lungs.

In two studies, Prof Gibbins and the team have begun to identify how the human body’s own immune response to fight Covid-19 in the form of antibody production is leading to blood clot formation.

When these clots, called thrombosis, happen in the lungs it leads to significant damage in patients.

Their research is also investigating certain drugs which may be able to support our bodies to fight Covid-19 without this dangerous clotting.

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Jon Gibbins, Professor of Cell Biology at the UoR, said: “I am not a virologist, but like many scientists I have been unexpectedly occupied over the last year in trying to work out why Covid-19 is so dangerous for some people, and how we might be able to better prevent serious symptoms in infected patients.

“One of the big reasons for this is that it seems to cause dangerous clots in the lungs and other tissues – which cause damage and prevent proper functioning of the lungs.

"During the first wave of infections in the UK, it became clear that this clotting was having a huge effect on recovery and that’s when we began to look at whether it could be reduced or reversed."

He added the research "is showing encouraging first steps, which may help us to move towards a future in which Covid-19 may not be a deadly disease any longer".

Recently, use of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine has been suspended in six European countries over blood clot fears.

However, the head of the Oxford University vaccine group has sought to reassure the public over its Covid-19 jab.

Professor Andrew Pollard said that while it was right that regulators investigated reports of blood clots in people who have had the vaccine, data from millions of people was "very reassuring" that there was no link.

It comes after the Netherlands became the latest country to suspend use of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine over concerns about possible side-effects.

The Dutch government said the precautionary move will last until at least March 29, following a similar decision made by the Republic of Ireland.

Denmark, Norway, Bulgaria, Iceland and Thailand have all temporarily suspended their use of the AstraZeneca jab.

Last week, the World Health Organisation (WHO), the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said there was no evidence of a link between the jab and an increased risk of blood clots.

Prof Pollard said "safety is clearly absolutely paramount" but that about 3,000 cases of blood clots occur every month in the UK from other causes.

"So, when you then put a vaccination campaign on top of that, clearly those blood clots still happen and you've got to then try and separate out whether, when they occur, they are at all related to the vaccine or not," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

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Prof Pollard said that more than 11 million doses have now been given in the UK, and the MHRA has said "very clearly that they're not seeing any increase in the number of cases of blood clots" over what they would see normally.

"I think at this moment we've got the most data from the UK, which looks very reassuring, but of course it's absolutely right that there's careful monitoring of safety and this gets looked into," he said.

The professor pointed to the "huge risks" from Covid-19 for those who are unvaccinated, adding that "if we have no vaccination and we come out of lockdown in this country, we will expect tens of thousands of more deaths to occur during this year".