30th November 2014
By Sayer Ji
Contributing Writer for Wake Up World
A groundbreaking new study published this month in Nature challenges a century old assumption about the innate pathogenicity of these extremely small, self-replicating particles known as viruses.
In the study, titled “An enteric virus can replace the beneficial function of commensal bacteria“, researchers found that an “enteric RNA virus can replace the beneficial function of commensal bacteria in the intestine”. Known as Murine (mouse) Noravirus (MNV), researchers found that infecting germ-free or antibiotic-treated mice infection with MNV “restored intestinal morphology and lymphocyte function without inducing overt inflammation and disease”.
The researchers found: “Importantly, MNV infection offset the deleterious effect of treatment with antibiotics in models of intestinal injury and pathogenic bacterial infection. These data indicate that eukaryotic viruses have the capacity to support intestinal homeostasis and shape mucosal immunity, similarly to commensal bacteria.”
Despite the commonly held belief that viruses are vectors of morbidity and mortality that must be vaccinated against in order to save us from inevitable harm and death, the new study dovetails with a growing body of research showing that our own genome is 80% viral in origin.
Reporting on the study, in an article well worth reading, the Science Daily states:
“The genomes of humans and other mammals contain DNA derived from the insertion of bornaviruses…
“The findings are the first strong evidence that viruses in the gastrointestinal tract can help maintain health and heal a damaged gut.”
They summarized the study’s findings as follows:
“The team infected germ-free mice and antibiotic-treated mice with MNV and found that the infection triggered the repair of intestinal tissue damaged by inflammation, restored intestinal cell numbers, restored intestinal cell function, and normalized tissue architecture. The results were apparent after just 2 weeks of MNV infection.
“Infection with MNV also helped restore the gut’s immune system. The investigators do not yet know how the virus supports the immune system. They did find, however, increased signaling by antiviral type 1 interferon proteins, suggesting the virus was playing a key role in driving the immune response.
“The investigators also documented a doubling of T-cell levels in the blood and detectable levels of antibodies in the gut and blood of antibiotic-treated mice after MNV infection. These measures were consistent with a normalization of the immune response. The authors conclude that viral infection of the gut may be helpful once antibiotic treatment has wiped out intestinal bacteria.
“Treatment with MNV was also able to improve survival in antibiotic-treated mice receiving the damaging chemical dextran sodium sulphate.”
Why We May Need Viruses More Than Vaccines
As our knowledge of the critical role of microbes increases, a paradigm-shift is occurring in medicine that is only beginning to trickle down to clinical practice. If our very identity depends on ‘germs’, and the bacteria within our body account for 10 times more cells and 99% more genetic material than is found in the human body itself, then the discovery that the viruses in our body (referred to in total as the ‘virome’) also perform indispensable functions in supporting and maintaining our health turns on its head many widely held assumptions about their role in contributing to human disease and various pathologies.
As reported in the Science Daily article, the senior investigator of the study, Ken Cadwell PhD from New York University, states:
“We have known for a long time that people get infected all the time with viruses and bacteria, and they don’t get sick… Now we have scientific evidence that not every viral infection is bad, but may actually be beneficial to health, just as we know that many bacterial infections are good for maintaining health.”
Consistent with the ‘hygiene hypothesis’, natural infections during childhood and onward may prime our immune system and help to balance the Th1 (innate) and Th2 (adaptive) poles of immunity, producing a healthy immune system as a result. Therefore vaccines, by disrupting this evolutionarily determined balance, may be contributing to widespread immune dysregulation, both suppressing innate immune mechanisms as well as over-stimulating the adaptive pole, contributing to widespread autoimmunity in exposed populations.
As science and molecular biology progresses and continues to reveal the inherent intelligence within the commensal relationship of the human body to the microbial universe, we are left with a crucial question:
Is the present-day globally orchestrated vaccine program really improving health, or does it belie a hubris that shirks the scientific evidence in favor of exerting control over the human body for economic and socio-political gains?
For additional research that suggests vaccines are incompatible with our natural evolution, please read the GreenMedInfo articles: Why Vaccines Aren’t Paleo and Vaccination Agenda: an Implicit Transhumanism / Dehumanism
Further articles by Sayer Ji:
- A Higher Level of Freedom – The Benefit of Cannabis to Health
- Eating Wheat & Cow’s Milk Disrupt DNA Expression & Antioxidant Status
- How WHOLE Turmeric Heals the Damaged Brain
- Fluoridated Water Can Calcify Arteries, Study Finds
- Research – Pineapple Enzyme Kills Cancer Without Killing You
- How Monsanto’s ‘RoundUp’ is Cursing the Global Food Supply
- Garlic Cures 100% of Warts In Clinical Study
- Research Proving Vitamin C’s Therapeutic Value in 200+ Diseases
- Sesame Seeds – Ten Amazing Health Benefits Of This Super-Seed
- Biophotons: The Human Body Emits, Communicates with, and is Made from Light
- 13 Evidence-Based Medicinal Properties of Coconut Oil
- The Spice That Prevents Fluoride From Destroying Your Brain
- Turmeric Beats Ibuprofen for Arthritis of the Knee
About the author:
Sayer Ji is an author, educator, Steering Committee Member of the Global GMO-Free Coalition (GGFC), advisory board member of the National Health Federation, and the founder of GreenMedInfo.com – an open access, evidence-based resource supporting natural and integrative modalities. His writings have been published and referenced widely in print and online, including Truthout, Mercola.com, The Journal of Gluten Sensitivity, New York Times and The Well Being Journal.
In 1995 Sayer received a BA degree in Philosophy from Rutgers University, where he studied under the American philosopher Dr. Bruce W. Wilshire, with a focus on the philosophy of science. In 1996, following residency at the Zen Mountain Monastery in upstate New York, he embarked on a 5 year journey of service as a counsellor-teacher and wilderness therapy specialist for various organizations that serve underprivileged and/or adjudicated populations. Since 2003, Sayer has served as a patient advocate and an educator and consultant for the natural health and wellness field.
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