[iwar] [fc:Origin.of.the.AIDS.Virus]

From: Fred Cohen (fc@all.net)
Date: 2002-06-22 12:41:53
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From: Fred Cohen <fc@all.net>
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Date: Sat, 22 Jun 2002 12:41:53 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [iwar] [fc:Origin.of.the.AIDS.Virus]
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<a href="http://cryptome.org/aids-origin.htm">http://cryptome.org/aids-origin.htm>
17 June 2002
Source: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d02809r.pdf
&lt;http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d02809r.pdf 

GAO 
United States General Accounting Office
Washington, DC 20548 
June 17, 2002 
The Honorable James A. Traficant, Jr.
House of Representatives
Subject: Origin of the AIDS Virus 
Dear Mr. Traficant: 
In response to your request to review an individual’s allegations that
the National Cancer Institute’s Special Virus Cancer Program (SVCP)
created the AIDS virus, we obtained information on (1) the overall
stated purposes and outcomes of SVCP, (2) scientific assessments of the
origins of the AIDS virus (HIV-1) and any possible evidence regarding
the origins of the AIDS virus at SVCP, and (3) the outcome of recent
litigation regarding the origins of the AIDS virus. On June 13, 2002, we
briefed your staff on the results of our analysis. The enclosed slides
formed the basis of the briefing we presented. 
To address our objectives, we consulted experts on HIV/AIDS and on SVCP,
reviewed SVCP progress reports and summaries as well as documents that
allege SVCP created the AIDS virus. In addition, we obtained information
on recent litigation involving the individual’s allegations. In summary,
we did not find evidence to support the allegation that SVCP created the
AIDS virus. Comments from the National Cancer Institute on a draft of
the briefing slides concluded that they are historically and
scientifically accurate. 
We are sending copies of this report to the Secretary of Health and
Human Services and the Acting Director of the National Cancer Institute.
We will also make copies available to others on request. In addition,
the report will be available at no charge on the GAO Web site at
<a href="http://www.gao.gov">http://www.gao.gov>. Please contact me at (202) 
512-7119 if you have any
questions. The major contributor to this report was Lawrence S. Solomon.

Sincerely yours, 
Janet Heinrich
Director, Health Care.Public Health Issues 
Enclosure 



GAO-02-809R 
Origin of the AIDS Virus 
Briefing for
the Office of the Honorable James A. Traficant, Jr.,
House of Representatives 
By the U.S. General Accounting Office 
June 13, 2002 



Background 
• An individual has alleged that the visna virus, which caused illness
and death in Icelandic sheep, was used by the National Cancer
Institute's (NCI) Special Virus Cancer Program (SVCP) to develop HIV-1,
the virus that has caused the global AIDS pandemic. 
• This individual cited a SVCP research program flowchart as evidence
that HIV-1 was developed intentionally in its laboratories. 
Objectives 
• Identify overall stated purposes and outcomes of SVCP. 
• Describe scientific assessments of the origins of the AIDS virus and
any possible evidence regarding the origin of the AIDS virus at SVCP. 
• Describe outcome of recent litigation involving the individual.s
allegations of federal government involvement in the origins of the AIDS
virus. 
Methodology 
To address our objectives, we: 
• Consulted experts on HIV/AIDS and on SVCP. They have expertise in
genetics, cell biology, viral oncology, biochemistry, internal medicine,
epidemiology, public health, and dentistry. Some of these experts are
cited by the individual as supporters of the allegation that SVCP
created the AIDS virus. 
• Reviewed SVCP progress reports and summaries issued between 1967 and
1984. 
• Reviewed documents that allege SVCP created the AIDS virus. 
• Obtained information on recent litigation addressing the individual's
allegations. 
• Performed our work from January through May 2002 in accordance with
generally accepted government auditing standards. 
Purpose of SVCP 
• NCI directed SVCP within the intramural laboratories from 1964 to
1980. After 1980, the work of SVCP was incorporated into NCI.s broader
National Cancer Plan. 
• Purpose was to find viruses in human cancer cells, relate them to
specific cancers (leukemia, etc.), and develop means to block their
effects and reduce cancer growth. 
• In 1972, SVCP developed a flowchart depicting research program to
investigate viral oncology (the study of how viruses cause cancer). 
• Outcome of SVCP did not lead to discovery of viruses in human cancer
cells, but did result in several advances in molecular biology. 
Scientific Assessment on the Origins of the AIDS Virus 
• The first scientific evidence of HIV-1 predates the 1964 commencement
of SVCP. 
• HIV-1 was found in blood samples of an African man who died in 1959.
(Zhu, Tuofu et al. .An African HIV-1 Sequence from 1959 and Implications
for the Origin of the Epidemic,. Nature 391, no. 6667 (1998): 594-97.) 
• HIV-1 was likely transferred to humans before 1955 from a subspecies
of chimpanzees infected with simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV).
(Korber, Bette et al. .Timing the Ancestor of the HIV-1 Pandemic
Strains,. Science 288, no. 5472 (2000): 1789-96.) 
• Historical analyses of virus development have demonstrated that while
the visna virus and HIV-1 shared some common origins thousands of years
ago, mutations of key genes over time have resulted in a wide divergence
of these two viruses. 
• These analyses have also demonstrated that the laboratory combination
of the visna virus and HIV-1 was highly improbable. 
• Therefore, there is no evidence that SVCP created the AIDS virus. 
Recent Litigation Involving Allegations Concerning the Origins of the
AIDS Virus 
• U.S. District Court (Northern District of Ohio) issued order September
16, 1999, dismissing allegations that the federal government developed
agent that subsequently became known as AIDS. 
• U.S. Court of Appeals (Sixth Circuit) affirmed the U.S. District Court
order November 7, 2000. The Court of Appeals referred to the allegations
as having .no basis in law or in fact. 
• U.S. Supreme Court denied petition to review the case June 4, 2001.
[Graves v. Cohen, No. 98-02209 (N.D. Ohio Sept. 16, 1999), aff.d 238 F.
3d 421, 2000 U.S. App. LEXIS 29203 (6th Cir. Nov. 7, 2000), cert. denied
sub nom. Graves v. Rumsfeld, 532 U.S. 1072 (2001).] 
Comments from NCI 
• We received oral comments from NCI on a draft of this briefing. The
comments stated that the information contained in this briefing is
historically and scientifically accurate. 
(290160) 

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