RetroVirus Discovered in CFS Back in 1991
Hi All,
I started this as a separate thread here and the Mods appropriately moved it to this thread so I didn't address what you all had written here as I just read it now. Is that confusing enough? lol Anyway, it seems we were on a similar track at PH as you were here. It's been fascinating reading what you've all written. Isn't this whole story amazing?
Well here's what I had worked on around the same time period:
I've been wondering if XMRV is the Retrovirus CAV that De Freitas found in 1991. Luminescent posted this link to the Retrovirus De Freitas had found there which I recalled reading long ago. Sorry in advance for all the capital letters but there was no way at PH to make things bold. Here's the post:
Link to the Article:
http://www.ncf-net.org/forum/revelations.html
This seems very compelling so I've left it below and want to put it up here as well: "Characterization of cracr proteins of CAV reveals that "animal retroviruses that have been shown to express cracr proteins of these molecular weights are: primate D-type retroviruses; primate C-type; lentiviruses (EIAV but not HIV); MOUSE B-type (MMTV)." MOUSE RETROVIRUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Anyway this article brings up major questions for me and it's also been forever since I read Osler's Web. I'm going to put some quotes from the article on here out of order because certain parts are more important right now to us than others.
Wistar Institute, Dr. Elaine DeFreitas, and the Cheney-Bell-DeFreitas Work: Startling Revelations from Wistar's World Patent and Serious Reasons for Concern Now Revealed!
The following article was written By Alan Cocchetto and all views expressed are his:
"The present invention provides compositions and methods for diagnosis, treatment and prophylaxis of Chronic Fatigue Immunodysfunction Syndrome (CFIDS) based on the detection of the presence of a novel CFIDS-ASSOCIATED VIRUS (CAV) in the body fluids or tissues of a patient.
If the NIH ignored the depth of this work, then the NIH dropped the ball on this one and the agency should be held accountable! The inventors even state "The ability to screen BLOOD SAMPLES infected by CAV enables producers and distributors of blood products, e.g. the American Red Cross, to identify and DISCARD DONATED BLOOD SAMPLES which are intended for use in transfusions or in the isolation of plasma, therapeutically useful blood proteins and blood cells. If unscreened, the use of such blood and blood-derived products could contribute to the spread of CFIDS." The implications here are staggering!
The summary of the invention is as follows: "The present invention provides a novel, substantially isolated Chronic Fatigue Immunodeficiency Syndrome-associated virus, hereafter referred to by the name CAV. Also disclosed by this invention are methods and assays for diagnosing and/or treating CFIDS patients.
The inventors state: "CAV may be morphologically characterized as a RETROVIRUS, particularly a non-C RETROVIRUS which is capable of infecting humans. CAV-infected cells could be characterized by electron-dense circular virions, associated with the rough endoplasmic reticulum and inside large abnormally distended MITOCHONDRIA in the cells. All particles are the same shape and size, 46-50 nm. The apparent location of its virions in the mitochondria distinguishes CAV from HIV."
Characterization of cracr proteins of CAV reveals that "animal retroviruses that have been shown to express cracr proteins of these molecular weights are: primate D-type retroviruses; primate C-type; lentiviruses (EIAV but not HIV); MOUSE B-type (MMTV); avian C-type retroviruses, and perhaps Foamy (Spuma) viruses.
The inventors then provide additional characteristics of the retrovirus such as its ability to INFECT BOTH T AND B-CELLS and that the primer binding site is for the transfer RNA, or tRNA, of lysine indicating that CAV is a non-C type RETROVIRUS. The inventors examined LOW MOLECULAR WEIGHT sas proteins and found the presence of p11-12, p13-14, and p27-28. Classes of primate and nonprimate ANIMAL RETROVIRUSES have such characteristically sized sas proteins.
Of course, all inventors identify their TEST KIT - one that is necessary for hospitals, doctors, etc. to officially DIAGNOSE the patient as having this illness. "The methods, probes, primers, and antibodies described herein may be efficiently utilized in the assembly of a diagnostic TEST KIT, which may be used by health care providers for the DIAGNOSIS AND/OR TREATMENT of CFIDS."
The inventors also discuss the details of a CFIDS VACCINE and the VACCINE composition! Furthermore, they disclose that "For performance of these experiments, patient body fluid samples were obtained from clinical practices in North Carolina and New York.
Extensive test results are disclosed at this point and the inventors reveal: "The results of the same PCR analyses of blood samples from adult CFIDS patients was compared with persons with whom they live or closely associate, e.g. roommates and friends (called Exposure Controls). Nonexposure controls are healthy persons selected at random who have not come into contact with CFIDS patients nor experienced symptoms associated with CFIDS." The inventors report their data from CFIDS patients including pediatric CFIDS patients!
To quote the patent, "the positive results seen in the Exposure Controls support the possibility that this CAV is capable of casual transmission to non-infected persons, as is the case with many non-human retroviruses." Now, if the NIH ignored this last comment, then something is dramatically wrong with the agency that is supposed to protect and safeguard the welfare of the citizens of the United States! Again, the implications here are just staggering!
Any way you cut this, the only conclusion that can be reached is that this work is very thorough and extensive. IT HAS BEEN FUNDED BY THE NIH! And I believe that, the NIH certainly has more than a singular idea about what is happening to us as patients, all the while DENYING THE EXISTENCE OF RETROVIRAL INVOLVEMENT and not providing details to outside scientists for additional examination and perhaps subsequent replication! Any RETROVIRUS that can INVADE THE MITOCHONDRIA directly indicates trouble! Why? Because THE MITOCHONDRIA are the energy powerhouses in the body and a direct infection of them spells major trouble --- alteration of MITOCHONDRIAL FUNCTION AND DYSFUNCTION in energy production! This could very well account for the patient's lack of stamina and that 'F-word', fatigue!
As far as I'm concerned here, there needs to be a criminal investigation of the NIH regarding why they refused to fund upon submission of all this data. Maybe then, some heads will roll and we'll begin to get some real answers! After all, each and every patient certainly deserves this and so much more!
[Ed. Note: Dr. DeFrietas presented much of this work at the Albany Medical Convention in 1991. She also submitted a paper of the work to the PNAS three times but was turned down. Why? Were the same people at the NIH who refused to fund her threatening the publication in some way? The refusal to fund her along with the CFIDS Assoc. pulling her funding lost us more than a decade of work!]"
End Quote of the article by Alan Cochetto.
Boy, is that last statement prophetic!
http://www.ncf-net.org/forum/revelations.html