Nanobacteria, HIV and magic bullets--update of perspectives 2005

In 1997 a Finnish group speculated on the presence of nanobacteria in vaccines. In 2001, a report on the identification of nanobacteria in a number of vaccines attracted much attention. Experiments indicated that viable nanobacteria are excreted via urine. Their extreme survivability suggests that prior to discussing any possible contamination of vaccines, sources and routes of natural infection need to be examined. In view of 30,000,000 HIV infections in sub-Saharan Africa, the recently reported occurrence of nanobacteria in HIV-infected patients deserves concern. Clearly, it could indicate the origin of a giant reservoir and dissemination cycle. Here we discuss novel therapeutic strategies to prevent or reduce nanobacterial infection. In regard of the rapid progress in this field, we start with a brief introductory summary, and analyze possible implications.