Date: Fri, 28 Jan 2005 11:13:54 -0800
From: "Eddie Bollenbach"
Subject: Re: [PPM] analogy

Two reasons for you to think about your premise:

• 1. The genes of the Poliovirus are a single strand of positive sense RNA. There is no DNA in the life cycle and the Polio virus does not even enter the nucleus where human DNA is. The virus does its dirty deeds inside the cytoplasm where just about all RNA viruses reproduce.

  The HIV virus is a bit different because it too is an RNA virus (double stranded I believe) but the RNA makes DNA which then goes into the nucleus. Polio does not have DNA and it's genes made of RNA do not go into the nucleus.

• 2. All cells of the body are not infected with Poliovirus because there is no Poliovirus receptor on spermatids, sperm, oocytes, or ova or even on some neurons. Viruses have a tissue affinity, like flu goes into nasal epithelial mucosa cells and not into the Central Nervous System. Therefore there is no way the polio genes can be passed from generation to generation. In humans the virus gets inside intestinal tissue and then some blood cells and then neurons. Neurons can't reproduce and recover and that's why we have problems.

Well over evolutionary time it is clear there is much too much DNA in our cells than we feel is needed to do everything that has to be done. Recently we found out we need even less than we thought. DNA codons can overlap so you can make a gene starting with the first base or second which gives a different sequence along one strand. The same occurs in other living things like chimps and dogs. You are correct about decoding but some of the decoded sequences are replications on and on. One theory is the DNA was added over eons by DNA viruses. But RNA viruses like polio have no way to hang on in gametes (sperm and egg).

Eddie
edward.bollenbach@snet.net
Bollenbach@commnet.edu
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