Missing Virus

Original Publication
VirusMyth

The Rules of Isolation

The rules for isolation of a retrovirus were thoroughly discussed at the Pasteur Institute, Paris, in 1973, and are the logical minimum requirements for establishing the independent existence of HIV. They are:

1. Culture of putatively infected tissue.

2. Purification of specimens by density gradient ultracentrifugation.

3. Electron micrographs of particles exhibiting the morphological characteristics and dimensions (100-120 nm) of retroviral particles at the sucrose (or percoll) density of 1.16 gm/ml and containing nothing else, not even particles of other morphologies or dimensions.

4. Proof that the particles contain reverse transcriptase.

5. Analysis of the particles' proteins and RNA and proof that these are unique.

6. Proof that 1-5 are a property only of putatively infected tissues and can not be induced in control cultures. These are identical cultures, that is, tissues obtained from matched, unhealthy subjects and cultured under identical conditions differing only in that they are not putatively infected with a retrovirus.

7. Proof that the particles are infectious, that is when PURE particles are introduced into an uninfected culture or animal, the identical particle is obtained as shown by repeating steps 1-5.

First Respons to Continuum Award (May '96)

Edward King, editor of UK's National AIDS Manual and writer for the Pink Paper, published the first respons in NAM's Treatment Update. The Perth Group wrote a reply.

Duesberg Claims Continuum Reward (July/Aug. '96)

Prof. Peter Duesberg believes HIV exists and has been isolated and claims the Continuum Award. The Perth Group wrote a long reply, and a summary. Neville Hodgkinson wrote also a summary. And Dr. Stefan Lanka wrote a comment too.

Debate Continues (Feb./March '97)

Prof. Peter Duesberg responded to the reply from the Australians and Dr. Stefan Lanka. The Perth Group replied again, and Dr. Stefan Lanka responded again too.

First Pictures of "Pure HIV" (March '97)

Two historic papers in the leading science journal Virology in March this year provide astonishing new data on the purification and isolation of HIV. For the first time in the history of AIDS, elusive electron microscope images of 'HIV' collected or 'banded' at the official density required for retroviruses, 1.16 gm/ml, have been published, by a research group in Germany. The electronmicrographs disclose "major contaminants" in "pure HIV".

HIV expert Hans Gelderblom of Berlin's Robert Koch Institute, whose photos of non-banded 'HIV' material have been the industrial benchmark since 1987, co-authored the first paper which describes the contamination as "an excess of vesicles" - particles of cellular proteins, that may contain DNA or RNA. In a consecutive paper, a US research team from the AIDS Vaccine Programme in Maryland reveal carefully, "It is unknown how these cellular proteins associate with the virus" and warn, "The presence of microvesicles in purified retroviruses has practical implications": both teams discuss the resulting nonspecifity of HIV tests, all of which are based on early unchecked "purified HIV".

In an historic admission that it has never been established which proteins constitute 'HIV', the US scientists conclude, "The development of various purification strategies to separate microvesicles from HIV-particles ... will greatly enhance our ability to identify virion-associated cellular proteins." The imaging step in attempts at retroviral isolation was deemed essential when isolation procedure was discussed and decided at the Pasteur Institute, Paris in 1972, but it has never been published before in the 13-year history of 'HIV'. (Continuum autumn 1997

See some more pictures, and a comment by the Perth Group.

Interview Prof. Montagnier (July '97)

The French journalist Djamel Tahi interviewed Dr. Luc Montagnier, the discoverer of HIV, about the isolation of the virus. Although he believes he isolated HIV, Montagnier confirms he could not purify the virus. The Perth Group wrote a comment. (Continuum winter 1997)

More Money to Earn (Aug. '98)

In addition to the Continuum Award organizations all around the world offer more money for the evidence of the existence of HIV. One can already collect over $ 25.000 by providing this evidence. See the additional terms. (page in Spanish!)

Professor Questions Isolation (Oct. '98)

Dr. Etienne de Harven is emeritus Professor of Pathology, University of Toronto. He worked in electron microscopy (EM) primarily on the ultrastructure of retroviruses throughout his professional career of 25 years at the Sloan Kettering Institute in New York and 13 years at the University of Toronto. In 1956 he was the first to report on the EM of the Friend virus in murine (mouse) leukemia, and in 1960, to coin the word "budding" to describe steps of virus assembly on cell surfaces. He delivered a speech at the 12th World AIDS Conference in Geneva at the session "HIV-testing: Open Questions about Specificity". He sent a letter and photo to Continuum, he wrote an article for the same magazine, and an article for Reappraising AIDS.

The Last Debate (Dec. '99)

"Debate has been taking place amongst the HIV/AIDS dissident groups regarding the wisdom of taking up the issue of HIV isolation as an argument in our fight against mainstream AIDS science." An article by the Perth Group.

German Professor Questions HIV (Oct. '00)

"During the past 20 years HIV-AIDS research has shown to a line of critical scientists again and again that the existence of HIV has not been proven without doubt, and that both from a aetiological (causal), and a epidemiological view, it can not be responsible for the immunodeficiency AIDS. In view of the general accepted HIV/AIDS hypothesis this appeared to me so unbelievable that I decided to investigate it myself. After three years of intensive and, above all, critical studies of the relevant original literature, as an experienced virologist and molecular biologist I came to the following surprising conclusion: Up to today there is actually no single scientifically really convincing evidence for the existence of HIV. Not even once such a retrovirus has been isolated and purified by the methods of classical virology."

Dr. Heinz Ludwig Sänger, Emeritus Professor of Molecular Biology and Virology and a former director of the Department of Viroid Research at the Max-Planck-Institutes for Biochemy near München, wrote a letter (in German) to the Süddeutsche Zeitung. Prof. Sänger was in 1978 rewarded with the prestigious Robert Koch Award. He also wrote the foreword (in German) for the book 'Mythos HIV' written by the German journalist Michael Leitner.

Isolation Experiments (April '01)

The South African government has set up a Presidential AIDS Advisory Panel to determine their policy on HIV and AIDS. Several dissidents are on the panel. They released an interim report and advised, because the lack of data, to do more research. Ten experiments, including the true isolation of HIV, have been proposed, and will be financed by the SA government. Read more about South Africa and AIDS.

Another Award (April '02)

Alex Russel is offering £10,000 Reward for the first person who can prove that HIV exists. See the details.