Scientists Make HIV Strain That Can Infect Monkeys
March 3rd, 2009My commentary consists of two links:
1. The AIDS conspiracy (If this is new to you, prepare to lose many hours.)
and
2. Dr. Mary’s Monkey by Edward T. Haslam
Via: Reuters:
Scientists have created a strain of the human AIDS virus able to infect and multiply in monkeys in a step toward testing future vaccines in monkeys before trying them in people, according to a new study.
This strain of HIV, the human immunodeficiency virus, was developed by altering a single gene in the human version to allow it to infect a type of monkey called a pig-tailed macaque, the researchers said on Monday.
The genetically engineered virus, once injected into this monkey, proliferates almost as much as it does in people, but the animal ultimately suppresses it and the virus does not make it sick, they said.
The strain is called simian-tropic HIV-1, or stHIV-1.
Researchers hope to be able to test possible new AIDS drugs and vaccines in monkeys before trying them in people.
There is a “cousin” virus to HIV called SIV, or simian immunodeficiency virus, that causes a disease similar to AIDS in certain types of monkeys.
But this monkey AIDS virus is not identical to the one that infects people and is not a perfect substitute for testing drugs and vaccines against HIV.
“If our research is taken further, we hope that one day perhaps in the not-too-distant future, we’ll be able to make vaccines that are intended for use in humans and the very same product will be able to be tested in animals before human trials,” Paul Bieniasz of the Rockefeller University in New York, one of the researchers, said in a telephone interview.
Scientists have struggled to create an AIDS vaccine.
“If you make a drug that’s effective against HIV, sometimes it works against SIV and sometimes it doesn’t. So that basically devalues SIV as an animal model for doing experiments involved with developing drugs,” Bieniasz said.
“Now if you want to develop a vaccine, essentially what you have to do is to make a parallel vaccine for HIV and for SIV. You can test the SIV vaccine in animals and then have to make the leap of faith that the same approach would work equivalently in humans.”
Writing in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the scientists said in making the genetically engineered virus they removed the HIV version of a gene, known as vif, and inserted the SIV version. This gene acts to thwart proteins made by the monkey that that kill viruses.
Bieniasz said the scientists may need to make additional changes in the stHIV-1 to make it better for testing vaccines.
The genetically engineered virus infects the monkeys and during the early course of infection is a reasonably good mimic of what happens in HIV-infected people, Bieniasz said.
But after initially spreading in the monkey’s body, the animal succeeds in suppressing the virus — not completely clearing the virus but driving it to very low levels.
“The slight problem is the monkeys don’t go on to develop AIDS, they don’t get sick,” Bieniasz said.
Thanks for devoting attention to this subject. As far as I’m concerned HIV/AIDS scares are a big fat red herring. The real lie is that the hiv virus has never been proven to exist, let alone cause disease. Sounds far off?
For anybody who is seriously interested in exploring the science behind the ‘hiv causes aids’-hypothesis (and, as it was rightly stated, has some spare time), there is a plethora of high-quality information:
a- a suitable article to get into the discussion can be found here:
– http://www.sparks-of-light.org/HIVGATE%20-%20review%20copy.pdf
and maybe as backgournd: http://medicine.plosjournals.org/perlserv/?request=get-document&doi=10.1371/journal.pmed.0020138
and http://medicine.plosjournals.org/perlserv/?request=get-document&doi=10.1371/journal.pmed.0020124
b- the discussion around an infamous publication in Harper’s Magazine. This discussion is particularly interesting because the ‘discoverer’ of HIV (Robert Gallo) has participated in it.
– The article: http://www.harpers.org/archive/2006/03/0080961
– Rebuttal by Gallo et al: http://www.rethinkingaids.com/GalloRebuttal/GalloScreed-20060322.pdf
– Rebuttal of the rebuttal by Duesberg et al: http://www.rethinkingaids.com/GalloRebuttal/overview.html
– Rebuttal of both rebuttals by Perth Group: http://www.rethinkingaids.com/GalloRebuttal/OtherOpinions/PerthGroup.pdf
– Letter by well-known journalist: http://www.rethinkingaids.com/GalloRebuttal/OtherOpinions/Hodgkinson.html
c- the discussion in Continuum Magazine about whether or not the virus has been proven to exist. Clarifies the difference in opinion of HIV-skeptics
– All contributions can be found at: http://www.virusmyth.net/aids/award.htm
d- Point by point rebuttal of the Durban declaration by Duesberg et al.
– http://www.rethinkingaids.com/portals/0/documentlibrary/durbandeclarationrebuttal.htm
e- debate on the BMJ website: http://www.rethinking.org/bmj/
f- Two great books:
– Fear of the Invisible by Janine Roberts
– The Origin, Persistence and Failings of HIV/AIDS theory
g- Other websites:
– Perth Group (groep C): http://www.theperthgroup.com/
– Pro-HIV propaganda website: http://www.aidstruth.org/
– Skeptics website: http://aras.ab.ca/index.php and http://www.virusmyth.net/aids/index.htm
– Blog skeptic: http://hivskeptic.wordpress.com/
– BBC documentary Guinea Pig Kids: http://www.guineapigkids.com/
– Researcher BBC documentaire Guinea Pig Kids: http://liamscheff.com/
– Documentary skeptics: Deconstructing the myth of AIDS
This might be of some use:
Dave Emory Interview with Ed Haslam about Dr. Mary’s Monkey
http://archive.wfmu.org:5555/archive/DX/dx080916.rm
Here’s more info on the same program:
http://spitfirelist.com/?p=508
Sorry its Real (Not) Audio.
Thanks for posting all of that, es.
Thanks also to you, shoe2one for that Dave Emory show.
Re: Real Audio: This is a pain free way of dealing with it:
http://www.free-codecs.com/download/Real_Alternative.htm