Plasma Proteins — A2M & IRAP
Your plasma carries its own anti-inflammatory pharmacy. We concentrate it — A2M and IRAP from blood and bone-marrow plasma — to protect cartilage, quiet angry joints and shut down the chemistry that turns injury into arthritis.
What A2M and IRAP actually do
Alpha-2 macroglobulin (A2M) is your body's master protease trap: a large plasma protein that captures and neutralizes the enzymes chewing through cartilage in an arthritic or injured joint. IRAP — interleukin-1 receptor antagonist protein — blocks IL-1, the cytokine at the top of the inflammatory cascade in joint disease and the driver of post-traumatic arthritis after injury and surgery.
Both circulate naturally, but at concentrations too low to overcome a diseased joint's chemistry. Using our Super Shot™ processing, we concentrate them at the point of care from your own blood plasma and bone-marrow plasma — drawn, prepared and injected in the same visit, with imaging guiding the delivery.
A note on what this isn't: Orthokine®/Regenokine®-style programs raise IL-1 blockers by incubating blood serum overnight — an approach that is not FDA-compliant for use in the United States. Our preparations are point-of-care and same-visit, and IRAP concentrated from bone-marrow plasma reaches levels beyond what those incubated-serum protocols report.
Three ways we deploy them
Alongside PRP and cell therapy. Platelets and cells rebuild; plasma proteins protect the construction site. Layering A2M or IRAP into an orthobiologic protocol calms the joint environment so the repair biology works in friendlier chemistry.
Standalone, in season. For the athlete whose joint flares mid-season, plasma proteins quiet inflammation without cortisone's cartilage cost and without downtime — a way to keep competing while protecting the joint you'll need next season too.
Around ACL and meniscus surgery. The IL-1 surge that follows a joint injury or operation is what seeds post-traumatic arthritis years later. Treating before and after ACL reconstruction or meniscus surgery is aimed squarely at blunting that cascade while the joint is most vulnerable.
Your plasma-protein visit, step by step
Evaluation & timing
Exam and imaging decide which protein, which source — blood or marrow plasma — and where it lands in your protocol or surgical calendar.
Draw
Blood, bone-marrow plasma, or both, collected under local anesthetic in the office.
Concentrate
Super Shot™ processing isolates and concentrates the target proteins during the same visit.
Guided injection
Delivered into the joint under imaging — standalone, layered with orthobiologics, or timed to your surgery.
Where plasma proteins earn their place
- Arthritic knees, hips and shoulders in an inflammatory flare
- In-season joint inflammation in competing athletes
- Before and after ACL reconstruction
- After meniscus surgery or significant meniscus injury
- Post-traumatic arthritis prevention in injured joints
- Joints too irritated to respond well to orthobiologics alone
Who it’s for
Athletes managing a season, patients heading into or out of knee surgery, and anyone whose joint chemistry needs quieting before — or alongside — regenerative repair. The evaluation sets the protein, the source and the timing.
Common questions about A2M & IRAP
What's the difference between A2M and IRAP?
Different targets in the same fight. A2M traps the proteases that physically degrade cartilage; IRAP blocks IL-1, the signaling molecule that keeps the joint inflamed and recruits more damage. Your evaluation and the joint's behavior decide which one — or both — your protocol calls for.
How is this different from Orthokine or Regenokine?
Those programs incubate blood serum overnight to raise IL-1 blockers, and they are not FDA-compliant for use in the United States. Our preparations are made at the point of care in a single visit — and IRAP concentrated from bone-marrow plasma reaches levels beyond what incubated-serum protocols report.
Can I get this mid-season without missing time?
That's one of its best uses: no downtime, no cortisone-style tissue trade-off. Athletes are typically back to training and competition immediately, and we coordinate timing around your schedule.
Does this replace PRP or cell therapy?
No — it's the other half of the equation. Plasma proteins calm and protect; platelets and cells rebuild. Some joints need only the calming; most benefit from the sequence.
Is it covered by insurance?
Like most orthobiologics, generally not. Exact pricing comes before anything is scheduled.
Protect the joint you're still using.
In season, around surgery, or alongside a rebuild — one evaluation sets which protein, which source, and when.