A blood-filtering procedure used to lower lipoproteins may also reduce circulating PFAS and microplastic-related signals, according to preliminary patient data from researchers at Technische Universität Dresden.
The study examined whether therapeutic apheresis, an extracorporeal treatment developed for severe lipid disorders, could also remove environmental contaminants from blood. The approach was based on the hypothesis that PFAS and micro- and nanoplastics may associate with lipoproteins, proteins, or larger “corona” complexes, making them accessible to filtration or adsorption.
The team first confirmed the expected treatment effects. In 34 patients undergoing double filtration plasmapheresis, C-reactive protein, fibrinogen, LDL cholesterol, and lipoprotein(a) were significantly reduced. Raman spectroscopy also showed lower cholesterol- and lipid-associated spectral bands after two apheresis approaches.
The researchers then measured plasma PFAS by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) in two independent laboratories. One laboratory found reductions of up to 25 percent in PFOA, PFOS, PFNA, and PFHxS in samples from 14 patients. A second, smaller analysis of four individuals reported larger average decreases across several PFAS, and several compounds were also detected in the discarded eluate.
“We did not go looking for this,” said Stefan Bornstein, first and corresponding author, in the team’s press release. “When we finally asked what else was leaving the circulation, two independent laboratories found the same compounds falling in the plasma and turning up in the eluate. It means the machine caught them. It does not yet mean the body is rid of them.”
Pyrolysis gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (Py-GC-MS) on blood from four patients showed polyethylene decreasing in all four and polyvinyl chloride decreasing in three. In two additional patients treated with double filtration plasmapheresis plus a selective nucleic acid adsorption device, several detectable polymers were no longer detectable after treatment, though the authors describe this result as suggestive rather than definitive.
Raman spectroscopy was used to detect and spatially map polystyrene particles in human eyelid skin. In a small adrenal-cell experiment, 30 nm polystyrene particles produced a trend toward increased cell death, while serum collected after apheresis showed a trend toward reducing that signal.
The authors stress that the findings remain preliminary. The study does not establish a shared clearance mechanism, show whether repeated apheresis can reduce total body burden, or resolve the analytical challenges that continue to complicate microplastic measurement in blood. Sample sizes were small, patient indications and apheresis systems varied, and contamination remains a persistent concern.
Future work will focus on tracking whether apheresis changes how these particles move through the body.
“Our next step is to expose large animals to micro- and nanoplastics labeled with radiotracers or iron, image them by PET and MRI, and look again after apheresis,” Bornstein said.
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