Could Mad-Cow disease actually be caused by a type of "Nanobacteria"?

Well I ran across this article in Wired today talking about Nanobacteria when a thought struck me, could Mad Cow Prions actually be a form of Nanobacteria? If so then the ways we have been dealing with it may be all wrong. Here is the link..

www.wired.com...

Believing them to be a possible new form of life, Kajander named the particles "nanobacteria," published a paper outlining his findings and spurred one of the biggest controversies in modern microbiology.

At the heart of the debate is the question of whether nanobacteria could actually be a new form of life. To this day, critics argue that a particle just 20 to 200 nanometres in diameter can't possibly harbour the components necessary to sustain life. The particles are also incredibly resistant to heat and other methods that would normally kill bacteria, which makes some scientists wonder if they might be an unusual form of crystal rather than organisms.

In 1998, Kajander tried to prove the sceptics wrong by turning up what he believed to be an example of nanobacteria's ribosomal RNA, something that only organisms have. But the claim was squashed two years later by a National Institutes of Health study, which found that the RNA was actually a remnant from a bacteria that often contaminates lab equipment.

Thoughts? Comments? Am I on the right track or wandering into a dead end. Who knows but one thing is for sure. This is an area of research that warrants close scrutiny over the next couple of years.

[edit on 16-3-2005 by sardion2000]

I copied and filed this one - along with another that suggests humans are actually multi-hybridized conglomerations of bacteria, viruses and more - each individual unique (teis in with personalized medicine).

VERY interesting stuff.

IMO - prions are likely a component of nanobacteria, rather than being them. ...The spin may override tho - but whatever it takes.


Here are my links:

www.wired.com...

www.wired.com...



...I was going to write a news article on this - bt why don't you tackle it? ...Let me know, kay?


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well I am thinking about this. I tend to think you could very well be on to something here........I am not a scientist or a doctor however, I am just a chick who 'Like's Ike'
You could very well be right about us handeling this disease wrong, for is that not how we handle MOST illness? In a backwards and confusing 'cut it out' manner? Always tending to the effects and not the cause....

The idea that mad cow could be NANO tech in nature, well....THAT would not surprise me one iota.
Good post!

Well the actuall article talks about other conditions, I just thought that one up myself to tell you the truth. There has been a farreaching debate as to wether Nanobacteria may be alive or not, but besides that it is a real phenomenon.

Nanobac has already been covered by ATSNN I believe and there is really nothing new in this article. I was thinking of writing an Op/Ed piece as there is NO direct link between the two, just my speculation. If I do write one it'll show up in a day or two as I want it to be complete.

NANO tech in nature, well....THAT would not surprise me one iota.

I did not say that at all, you should read the whole article. Nanobacteria is a new lifeform so say some Micro-Biologists(or shall we say Nanobiologists) They have linked it to a host of common ailments including Kidney Stones(For instance in alot of stones at the center there is usually a Nanobacterial.)

On the other hand, some scientists believe Nanobacteria are just misnamed unknown crystal growth but both sides agree it is something we need to study. Only a handfull of people are doing so atm.

[edit on 16-3-2005 by sardion2000]

Your research is very accurate, this is a link to people doing research in that field. A new paper will be posted in the next few weeks on your very subject. Good data man, excellent............

www.nsls.bnl.gov...

Mad cow comes from Cannibalism.



Unlike disease-causing viruses or bacteria, prions are normal proteins found throughout the body tissues of humans and other animals. But for reasons that are not at all understood, normal prions sometimes transform themselves into tiny particles that cannot be killed with boiling water, chemical disinfectants or strong radiation.

a4a.mahost.org...



The Trembling Mountain: A Personal Memoir of Kuru, Cannibals, and Mad Cow Disease.

Studying kuru, a disease transmitted by eating human brains, is a good way to learn about cultural differences-and mad cow disease.

www.findarticles.com...


Humans might be infected by prions in 2 ways:
Acquired infection (diet and following medical procedures such as surgery, growth hormone injections, corneal transplants) i.e. infectious agent implicated.

Apparent hereditary mendelian transmission where it is an autosomal and dominant trait. This is not prima facie consistent with an infectious agent.
This is one of the features that single out prion diseases for particular attention. They are both infectious and hereditary diseases (?see below). They are also sporadic, in the sense that there are also cases in which there is no known risk factor although it seems likely that infection was acquired in one of the two ways listed above.


Kuru is the condition which first brought prion diseases to prominence in the 1950s. Found in geographically isolated tribes in the Fore highlands of New Guinea. Established that ingesting brain tissue of dead relatives for religious reasons was likely to be the route of transmission. They ground up the brain into a pale grey soup, heated it and ate it. Clinically, the disease resembles CJD. Other tribes in the vicinity with same religious habit did not develop the disease. It is speculated that at some point in the past a tribe member developed CJD, and as brain tissue is highly infectious this allowed the disease to spread. Afflicted tribes were encouraged not to ingest brain tissue and the incidence of disease rapidly declined and is now almost unknown.

www-micro.msb.le.ac.uk...

[edit on 16-3-2005 by sardion2000]

Originally posted by sardion2000
SpittinCobra, I know all that already. I am just speculating that the underlying cause may be because of Nanobacteria. I have no evidance to back that one up though.

This thread is purely speculative in nature.

Hay I was just adding to the thread, no need to be snippy.

Originally posted by SpittinCobra

Originally posted by sardion2000
SpittinCobra, I know all that already. I am just speculating that the underlying cause may be because of Nanobacteria. I have no evidance to back that one up though.

This thread is purely speculative in nature.

Hay I was just adding to the thread, no need to be snippy.

Oh sorry, I thought you were correcting me or something. I am in a snippy mood today and for that I'm sorry. We need a shamefull emote.