home

Hogwash claim in HIV appeal

COLIN JAMES, LEGAL AFFAIRS EDITOR

February 12, 2007 03:50pm

Article from:

ONE of the two international scientists who discovered AIDS today told a Supreme Court appeal that claims by self-professed experts that the disease does not exist are "hogwash".

Professor Robert Gallo told the court one of his colleagues would be "rotating in his grave" if he knew how his research had been misquoted during an appeal by a South Australian man against his conviction for having unprotected sex with three woman.

Giving evidence by video link from the US, he variously described claims made by two members of an AIDS-denialist organisation, The Perth Group, on behalf of Andre Parenzee, 35, as "misguided", "inappropriate" and "delusional".

Prof Gallo is the most eminent of several experts assembled by the Office of Director of Public Prosecutions to rebut allegations by Eleni Papadopulos-Eleopulos and Dr Valendar Turner that AIDS does not exist and the HIV virus cannot be sexually transmitted.

Credited internationally with discovering AIDS in the early 1980s in conjunction with French scientist Professor Luc Montagnier, he told Justice John Sulan he could not "believe this has occupied the time of the court".

Professor Gallo – the most highly referenced scientist in the world between 1980 and 1995 – said he "was going out of his mind" when he read transcript of the recent Supreme Court hearings sent to him by prosecutor Sandi McDonald.

The transcripts recorded Mrs Papadopulos-Eleopulos and Dr Turner as claiming there was no scientific evidence that HIV exists or that it caused AIDS.

"The stupidity of it is to the extreme. If it is out of ignorance, how do you hold yourself up to be an expert," said Prof Gallo from his office in Bethesda, Massachusetts.

"It would be like me arguing with Einstein about relativity."

Professor Gallo later clashed with defence barrister Kevin Borick, QC, during a heated exchange over an official investigation conducted into some of his research activities.

The hearing continues.

Have your say

Latest Comments:

John Bleau states: "... In a discussion at BMG between dissident Rasnick and AIDS researcher Biyan Foley, when the former insisted on the studies proving the sexual transmissibility of the disease, the latter was unable to come up with a single one. ..." This is half true. I provided dozens of peer-reviewed papers all providing SOLID evidence that HIV-1 and HIV-2 are sexually transmitted. But the denialists insist on the sort of "proof" which could not even be found to support the idea that pregnancy is related to sex. Go read the BMJ for yourself, and decide who is being dishonest.
Posted by: Brian Foley of 4:05am March 03, 2007

Let it be knpwn: Gallo exposes his ignorance on record in Australian Court. He has sealed his own fate. His lack of knowledge that monoclonal antibodies do in fact react with 'other proteins' is proof in my mind of the worthlessness of his tests. Even if the test were specific?! and they can never be, what are they testing for? The class of retroviral material that HIV is purported to be is of a simple genetic structure and similar to other retriviruses that don't kill cells. 30 yrs. of cancer research proved this prior to Gallo's science by press conference...Retroviruses killing cells? Never. Not in human, not in virtro and never in Gallo's cell cultures.Hahahaa.. I suggest Gallo and his cronies be put on tral instead for the murder of hundreds of thousands....
Posted by: Winston Rodrugues of Toronto 6:02pm February 16, 2007

HIV as a viral entity is a hypothesis and AIDS as a result of HIV is another hypothesis. Both are used to support each other. This became possible, because retrovirology changed the way viruses had to be proven. Gallo's way of "proving" has nothing to do with science at all. It's very plain to see that.
Posted by: Bruce Carter of San Francisco 4:25pm February 13, 2007

Chris Noble should also note that Gallo admitted to lying to the U.S. Congress about the existence of certain samples and about having been the discoverer of the virus. Generally, unless someone makes some really special rules for special cases, a person who lies about having discovered something is not credible as an authority about that thing.
Posted by: Thomas Kirby of 4:20pm February 13, 2007

Read all 12 comments

We welcome your comments on this story. Comments are submitted for possible publication on the condition that they may be edited. Please provide your full name. We also require a working email address - not for publication, but for verification. The location field is optional. Read our publication guidelines.

Submit your feedback here:

Search for more stories on this topic on Newstext, our news archive service. Click here

Adelaide Shopper

Sell your household goods for free. It's money for nothing

Network Feature

Spill your guts

Express your concerns, fears and frustrations about looking for a new job.

Switch on Origin

Enjoy your FREE mag or electricity Click here

Dell + Windows Vista - Custom-build a Dell with Windows Vista for a system that works for you

Buy life insurance online - ING offers up to $500,000 instant cover with no medical examinations.

Love & Relationships - Find a date near you on Match.com - # 1 Online Dating site Worldwide.

FOXTEL from Telstra - $0 installation.

home