Medical Experts Speak Out -- SARS Virus Could Be Man-Made and Possibly a Bio-Weapon

News Pundit.net ^ | 4/11/2003 | Douglas Oliver

[ex-Texan]

Medical Experts Speak Out -- SARS Virus Could Be Man-Made and Possibly a Bio-Weapon

This was the breaking news late yesterday. News 24 was reporting that top Russian medical experts were lining up to express concern about the virus. A brief excerpt:

Nikolai Filatov, head of Moscow's epidemiological services, told the Gazeta daily that he thought the pneumonia was man-made because "there is no vaccine for this virus, its make-up is unclear, it has not been very widespread and the population is not immune to it." * * *

The virus, according to academy of medecine member Sergei Kolesnikov, is a cocktail of mumps and measles, whose mix could never appear in nature. * * *

"We can only get that in a laboratory," he told a conference in the Siberian city of Irkutsk, quoted by RIA Novosti news agency.

It may have spread because of an "accidental leak" from a lab, he added. * * *

Another top level Russian scientist expressed similar views today. Dr. Sergei Kolesnikov, Academician of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences was quoted in En Rian.ru that he believed the virus if atypical pneumonia has been created artificially in a laboratory "possibly as a bacteriological weapon."

He stated his opinion in that regard in news conference in Irkutsk (Siberia) on Thursday.

* * * the virus of atypical pneumonia is a synthesis of two viruses (of measles and infectious parotiditis or mumps), the natural compound of which is impossible. This can be done only in a laboratory, the academician is convinced. He also said that in creating bacteriological weapons a protective anti-viral vaccine is, as a rule, worked out at the same time. Therefore, the scientist believes, a medicine for atypical pneumonia may soon appear. He does not exclude that the spread of the virus could have begun accidentally, as a result of "an unsanctioned leakage" from a laboratory. * * *

Dr. Kolesnikov is a famous scientist with international standing. He served as a former co-President of the IPPNW and as member of the Russian Duma. He has published many international scientific papers. A brief biography may be found here.

ABC News.au had a nearly identical report up on its web site today. They are reporting that the SARS "Mystery Virus" may well be a Chinese bio-weapon that accidently escaped the laboratory.

NewsPundit is following the lead of the Russians:

I have been biting my tongue for the last week and trying to quiet the bio-weapon rumors that have been floating around. But now I believe the "cat has been let out of the bag." All of the evidence is pointing to a man-made virus. Russian medical science may be years ahead of the U.S., U.K. in its experience with such things. So I reluctantly follow their lead.

The Chinese have a lot of explaining to do. The virus is now "out there" . . . just like the "Truth is Out There ...." One thing they can explain: Was this a test of the World Heath Organization, or how quickly the U.S. is capable of reacting to a bio-weapon ?

[John H K]

There isn't the slightest indication ANY of these Russian scientists have gotten samples of the virus, looked at it, or examined patients with the virus.

But hey, people want to believe it's a bioweapon because it makes them feel better and it's less frightening to believe it's a bioweapon (I'm not kidding; people would be more terrified if it was a random natural mutation).

There have been hundreds of naturally emergent new diseases in human history, and one of the best areas for this is Southern China.

The 1918 Flu pandemic, of course, wasn't bioengineering because people didn't have the capability back then. But if it happened today 90% of FR would be convinced it was biowarfare and it would be hopeless to convince them otherwise.

[semaj]

I was talking to a friend of mine just the other day about this possibility. A plausible scenairio could be that this is a bio-weapon that perhaps a terrorist organization accidentally released in or were themselves exposed to while transporting to a potential target city. Hence, the relative small number of casualties to date, due to a lack in concentrated release.

[DB]

4% of the US population is only about 12,000,000...

No big deal eh?

[vetvetdoug]

Measles is a paramyxovirus and this virus (SARS) is a Coronavirus. This article is pure speculation. I have seen viruses mutate in a population before and be just as lethal as supposedly bioengineered viruses. SARS is a quirk of nature that is common and occurs every 20-40 years or so. It is highly infectious and will spread no matter what we do to prevent it.

[CathyRyan]

The flu of 1918 was 2.5 - 2.7 death rate and they are still talking about that one. 50% of medical staff (without special protection) treating patients come down with sars.

[DB]

I don't believe the Asian Flu killed 3 to 4% of those who got it. That's 1 out of 25 people dead. Those aren't good odds. If FR has 40,000 members 1,600 would die. 12,000,000 would die in the US if everyone got it. No small thing.

[ex-Texan]

The Chinese should be hung up by the feet and beaten to within an inch of their lives. They knew about more infections and they stonewalled WHO officials. The stonewalling says more than the medical research discoveries.

The doctor (medical researcher) who was staying in Hong Kong has infected by proxy over 2,700 people in 15 - 17 countries. How many have died so far ... 130 ? He went into the hospital telling then he was highly contagious ... How did he know?

This SARS "Mystery Flu" will destroy Chinese trade with HK, Singapore, Tawian, Vietnam, Japan, South Korea and the U.S. The airlines are crippled and dying and people in HK have been told they have to live in masks 24/7 for the next six months.

China ought to be sanctioned heavily for releasing this virus on the world.

[DB]

That death rate was without the aid of modern medicine. SARS is…

[11B3]

The region of China where this started is agricultural. China's bioweapons program is one of the most secret on the planet. This probably leaked out through one of the non-scientific workers being exposed to it and then took it home.

If that is the case, and the Chinese didn't intend for it to get loose yet, then they haven't perfected the vaccine either. As with any disease, countries with less healthy living conditions and weaker health care systems will be hit the hardest. Especially China, and Russia as well.

I read yesterday that this effects Asians more dramatically than non-Asians. Anyone else read or hear about that?

[ex-Texan]

Bzzzzz !

You are wrong.

It is a mix of two previously unknown viruses that are looking to be a paramyxovirus and a Coronavirus.

[eno_]

I disagree that a 5% death rate is too low for a bioweapon. One reason were are not wiped out by ebola is that it kills quickly and comprehensively. It doesn't ever get very far. A bioweapon is a balancing act.

Still, the quotes from these Russians are not exactly awe inspiring. One mistakes a bacteria for a virus (though that could be translation error), and others are not backed by any facts or deductions. A pile of loose assertions, and very little useful information.

[CathyRyan]

The 64 thousand dollar question is....How long can we keep up modern medicine standards when under attack by sars?

[Diogenesis]

Could you please point me to the source of this (and maybe other) statistic?

click here - article from NEJM on pdf

[Henchman]

I never said the flu wasn't serious - read about the 1918 flu that wiped out millions world wide. The only credence one could give to a Bio weapon is that Bush will permit quaranteen of those infected. (Is it more serious than AIDS?)

[ladyinred]

I thought this already, but doubt this will be reported much if true.

[MrPeanut]

I think the Russians are trying to draw attention away from their backing of Iraq.

[DB]

Yes, I think it is more serious than AIDS. The chances of getting AIDS for a person like me and my family and likely you are very remote. Not so with SARS if it isn't contained now. SARS has a higher death rate than the 1918 flu and that is in spite of modern medicine's advances since then which are huge.

[cdrw]

Hi gang - first post.

Okay so there is no love lost between the Russians and the Chinese. The Russians are a propoganda machine ... we have to take their rumor baiting with a grain of salt. I do have a concern about the "4% mortality rate". I can not find a believable reference to this number. The CDC SARS site contains total known cases and total deaths. If you divide deaths by cases you get about 4% but that doesn't cut it for me.

The total number of deaths divided by the cumulative total number of cases does not account for the fact that many of these cases have not yet had time to die. I have two open questions for the world. 1) Does anybody have a reference to scientifically valid and reliable estimates of the mortality rate for this thing? and/or 2) does my thinking simply reflect ignorance of the topic?

Think about it. If it usually takes a week or two to die after showing symptoms and the vast majority of cases have shown up only in the past week then ... the deaths reported thus far are old news. I would think the mortality rate might be more accurately calculated as number of dead people divided by total number of people known to have recovered completely. Any thoughts?

[MatthewViti]

this article fails to mention that the virus originated from room 911 in the metropole hotel in hong kong.

[Beck_isright]

"But why in Hong Kong?"

I'm no bioweapon expert (but I did stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night), it would seem to be the perfect starting point as that is a major economic gateway which transits people worldwide too and from that location. You could spread anything rapidly from there. IMHO.