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rikkapik.bsky.social
RikkaPik
@rikkapik.bsky.social
170 followers 340 following 380 posts
Suffering from ME/CFS, turning to art to keep (almost) sane. PTSD survior, broken brain lefty and demiace Gen X.
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tomkindlon.bsky.social
New from international research group

Immunoglobulin G Complexes from Post-infectious ME/CFS, including post-COVID ME/CFS Disrupt Cellular Energetics and Alter Inflammatory Marker Secretion

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

#MEcfs #LongCovid #CFS #PwME #MyalgicEncephalomyelitis

1/
Abstract Background Autoimmunity is a key clinical feature in both post-infectious Myalgic encephalomyelitis / chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) and Post-Acute Sequelae of COVID (PASC). Passive transfer of immunoglobulins from patients' sera into mice induces some clinical features of PASC. However, the physiological effects of immunoglobulins on cellular alterations remain elusive. In this study, we tested the potential effects of immunoglobulins from ME/CFS patients on endothelial cell dysfunction. Methods We have isolated immunoglobulins from 106 individuals, including ME/CFS (n=39), PCS-CFS (n=15), MS (n=20) patients, and healthy controls (n=41). Protein composition of the isolated immune complexes was studied using mass spectrometry. The effect of isolated immune complexes on mitochondria was evaluated using confocal microscopy and a Seahorse XFe96 Extracellular Flux Analyzer, and the impact on inflammatory cytokine secretion was studied using a multiplex bead-based assay. Results Here, we demonstrate that IgG isolated from post-infectious ME/CFS patients selectively induces mitochondrial fragmentation in human endothelial cells and alters cellular energetics. This effect is lost upon cleavage of IgG into its Fab and Fc fragments. The digested Fab fragment from ME/CFS alone was able to alter the cellular energetics, resembling the effect of intact IgG. IgG from post-infectious ME/CFS, including post-COVID ME/CFS patients, induced distinct but separate cytokine secretion profiles in healthy PBMCs. Proteomics analysis of IgG-bound immune complexes revealed significant changes in immune complexes from ME/CFS patients, affecting extracellular matrix organization, whereas those from post-COVID ME/CFS patients pointed to alterations in hemostasis and blood clot regulation. Conclusions We demonstrate that IgGs from ME/CFS patients carry a chronic protective stress response that promotes mitochondrial adaptation via fragmentation, without altering mitochondrial ATP gen…
February 4, 2026 at 2:59 PM
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tomkindlon.bsky.social
Exciting to read about the ME/CFS research studies planned in the Netherlands

Millions of euros of taxpayers' money is supporting biomedical research

Google English translation:
nmcb-eu.translate.goog/general-asse...

#MEcfs #CFS #PwME #MyalgicEncephalomyelitis #ChronicFatigueSyndrome #MEcvs #CVS
General Assembly Jan '26 Patient Report from the NMCB General Assembly Opening of the NMCB General Assembly The General Assembly of the Netherlands ME/CFS Cohort and Biobank Consortium (NMCB) on January 13, 2026, was opened by Jos Bosch, project leader of the consortium. In his introduction, he outlined how NMCB has developed since its inception from a relatively compact research program into a broad, national collaboration that now encompasses thirteen research projects. Bosch discussed the infrastructure that forms the core of the consortium. NMCB connects all seven university medical centers in the Netherlands, supplemented by universities, research institutes such as TNO, clinical partners, and patient organizations. This shared infrastructure consists of a comprehensive patient registry, multiple biobanks (blood, muscle tissue, brain material), and a broad testing program including MRI, EEG, cognitive tests, and autonomic function measurements. A key point in his opening remarks was the accessibility of the research. Bosch emphasized that NMCB explicitly focuses on the participation of seriously ill and homebound patients, including through home measurements, mobile measurement setups, and adapted protocols. This group is often overlooked in research, even though it is there that the most pronounced biological signals are potentially visible.
February 2, 2026 at 7:32 PM
rikkapik.bsky.social
#ME/CFS #Covid Pain is a weird thing. Like how you get used to it. I had an infection (I do suspect Covid, but I can't be bothered to check any more, I am at home constantly, anyway) in early October. After that one infection or other. Today is the first day things are looking up. Like, I don't feel
January 29, 2026 at 4:13 PM
rikkapik.bsky.social
youtu.be/tZ1_o8uJIVU?...
The Politics of Might vs. The Economics of Care
YouTube video by Richard J Murphy
youtu.be
January 29, 2026 at 10:00 AM
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tomkindlon.bsky.social
News Release 27-Jan-2026

Altered brain connection found in people with ME/CFS and Long COVID

People with #MyalgicEncephalomyelitis/ #ChronicFatigueSyndrome & #LongCOVID experience a disruption to their brain connectivity during a mentally demanding task.

www.eurekalert.org/news-release...

#PwME
News Release 27-Jan-2026 Altered brain connection found in people with ME/CFS and Long COVID People with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) and Long COVID experience a disruption to their brain connectivity during a mentally demanding task. Peer-Reviewed Publication Griffith University FacebookXLinkedInWeChatBlueskyMessageWhatsAppEmail Altered brain connection found in people with ME/CFS and Long COVID image: Altered brain connection found in people with ME/CFS and Long COVID view more Credit: Griffith University People with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) and Long COVID experience a disruption to their brain connectivity during a mentally demanding task. The new Griffith University research, published today, used ultra-high field MRI technology to investigate the significant reduction in brain connectivity in specific parts of the brain.
January 28, 2026 at 3:31 PM
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meownersclub.bsky.social
#ME #LongCovid #Lyme #POTS #PEM #LivesWeCannotLive
@meassociation.org.uk
@longcovidsupport.bsky.social
#Justice4ME
@ashleydaltonmp.bsky.social
@decodemestudy.bsky.social
@thelancet.com
@nhsengland.bsky.social
This Week in Disbelief People with #ME and #LC are learning consistently and fast... So the enduring mystery is why so many doctors worldwide are not learning anything new at all. The cartoon maker is #FanningTheFlames
January 28, 2026 at 10:00 AM
rikkapik.bsky.social
Den muss ich mal loswerden. Nach den Äußerungen über psychische Erkrankungen, Streichung des Arbeitsrechts, dass man Leute überreden sollte, statt für 500,-€ lieber für 2.000,-€ zu arbeiten, dass Krankheit ja vielleicht nur eine Sache der Motivation sei... Ich würde sie nie selbst wählen, aber
January 27, 2026 at 8:40 PM
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chronicillnessmeme.bsky.social
January 27, 2026 at 3:50 PM
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tomkindlon.bsky.social
Longitudinal Landscape of Long Flu and Long COVID

www.mdpi.com/2673-8112/6/...

Screenshot from latest Science for ME weekly update

#LongCovid #PASC #PwLC #postcovid #postcovid19 #PAIS
Longitudinal Landscape of Long Flu and Long COVID — Ming Zheng "The advent of Long COVID has propelled a significant expansion in our understanding of the long-term sequelae of viral infections" "this longitudinal analysis reveals that an influenza infection is not an isolated event" "precipitates a durable, multi-system legacy of incident morbidity that persists for up to five to fifteen years. This 'long flu' syndrome, characterized by significantly elevated risks of cardiovascular, neurological, and metabolic sequelae, represents a previously underappreciated public health burden."
January 27, 2026 at 1:37 AM
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pheonixxfoxx.bsky.social
Never underestimate the power of small acts of kindness. They can make a big difference and turn a life around. There have been many small acts that people have done for me that I'll never forget. Goodnight. 💙

🎨: @/4rthur-k.bsky.social
January 26, 2026 at 7:05 AM
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tomkindlon.bsky.social
Short blog post by K. Johnstone @kjohnstone.bsky.social :

"'You'd get better if you just....' is bullying and we don't deserve it."

substack.com/@mecfs/note/...

#MEcfs #chronicillness #hiddenillness #invisibleillness #ChronicIllnesses #LongCovid #ChronicPain
K. Johnstone 4d Making sense of ME/CFS "You'd get better if you just...." is bullying and we don't deserve it. People with ME, Long Covid, and other chronic diseases are bombarded with messages that our illness can be treated 'holistically,' using a 'mind-body' approach. We just need to 'calm our nervous systems'. We need to 'reprogram our nervous systems'. The treatment you're supposed to do, the one magic trick that will 'cure' you, keeps changing. Yoga. Breathwork. Mindfulness. No, a different kind of mindfulness. Massage. Positive thinking. No, a different kind of positive thinking. It's exhausting. But more than that, it belittles us. It dismisses us. The people who insist on saying "You'd get better if you just did this one particular type of therapy," see themselves as compassionate, but they are bullies.
January 25, 2026 at 6:38 PM
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chronicillnessmeme.bsky.social
January 25, 2026 at 5:31 PM
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bar44.bsky.social
Icy snow at Crater Lake National Park #Cold #Photography #CraterLake #Oregon #Snow #Trees 📷
January 25, 2026 at 5:33 AM
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pikat.io
too tired to draw anything proper today
January 25, 2026 at 10:44 AM
rikkapik.bsky.social
#clairobscure #fanart #blueskyart #Lune It has been a while since I postet my own art. I have been turning to 3D but my computer has a bit of a nervous breakdown, I have to take it slowly. My best buddy will help me and painting is still okay, so here is Lune for you, even though I can't play myself
January 24, 2026 at 7:00 PM
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nasibov.me
In the Czech Republic, 90-year-old Agnes Kasparkova transforms her small village into an art gallery.
January 23, 2026 at 7:54 AM
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tomkindlon.bsky.social
New webpage from Germany:

Official webpage on National Decade Against Post-Infectious Diseases (€500,000,000 into research!)

Google translation:
www-bmftr-bund-de.translate.goog/DE/Forschung...

Auf Deutsch:
www.bmftr.bund.de/DE/Forschung...

#MEcfs #LongCovid #CFS #PwME
Federal Ministry for Research, Technology and Space logo Post-infectious diseases Medical research Effective treatment options for post-infectious diseases such as Long COVID or ME/CFS are currently lacking. The National Decade Against Post-Infectious Diseases is elucidating the causes and mechanisms and gradually laying the foundation for the development of new therapeutic options.
January 21, 2026 at 1:51 PM
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annesmien.bsky.social
Another sunny watercolour painting. Somewhere in France! #art #watercolours #painting #sunny
A watercolour painting of some steps surrounded by flowers. I copied this from a watercolour teaching book which featured a lot of buildings/places in France.
January 19, 2026 at 4:25 PM
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bakerart.bsky.social
One more London one, an oil on canvas of #Leadenhall Market. My wandering around the City of London in the '90s was a revelation. I thought Leadenhall particularly wonderful and did several paintings there although this one was mostly worked on at home. Sold in an exhibition.
#London #painting
An oil on canvas of Leadenhall Market in the City of London. It still had market traders then. Does it have them now? I don't know - perhaps it has been completely gentrified. Haven't visited for a long time.
January 19, 2026 at 5:11 PM
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squirlykat.bsky.social
Goodnight
#Birds
Peregrine falcon in flight
January 18, 2026 at 10:45 PM
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mojubaolu.bsky.social
Amaryllis. Ist of the quartet on the sole blooming flower today.
January 18, 2026 at 5:45 AM
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owensgrandpa.bsky.social
Treasure flowers
August 18th 2024
January 18, 2026 at 5:56 PM
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tomkindlon.bsky.social
The Sick Times @thesicktimes.org : "Severe people may hold answers to #LongCOVID. They must be included in research" by @neurologistmom.bsky.social

thesicktimes.org/2026/01/13/s...

Screenshot from Science for ME update

#PASC #PwLC #postcovid #postcovid19 #LC #Covidlonghaulers #PostCovidSyndrome
The Sick Times "Severe people may hold answers to Long COVID. They must be included in research." This article argues that research studies which include severe cases "may reveal what drives the disease at its core, mechanisms that remain invisible in milder cases." It also lists examples of research studies that have included severe cases to demonstrate that it is possible.
January 19, 2026 at 1:36 AM
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galder.bsky.social
Bath Time!! It's all fun and games, until she pulled out the BIG BRUSH D:.

Supporter reward for AstralFox. Check out my Subscriptions on DA if you'd like to support me and get similar artworks up to 2x a year!

#fantasy #art #reward #wow #warcraft #werewolf #worgen #elf #vampire #sanlayn #digital
January 15, 2026 at 6:04 PM
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markstroud.bsky.social
Watercolor practice #art
Watercolor painting portrait of a woman in blue holding the strap of the backpack on her back. Behind her is a large three eyed owl on red
January 13, 2026 at 1:03 PM