Transposons are parts of the genome that have the ability to move around within the genome causing major changes. And there are elements in the human genome called "retrotransposons" that are related to retroviruses. In his paper Dr. Plasterk depicted a state of constant potential for gene insurgency, with rogue elements constantly in need of suppression. Could retroviral genetic insurgency play a role in the origin of generating HIV?          My belief is that HIV can indeed be generated from human genomic retroviral material in the course of events surrounding anal intercourse. Such viruses would not be simply be transmitted from one person to another but created or “liberated” by a sequence of events beginning with the generation of sperm by meiosis.        It should be noted that I'm not suggesting that HIV infection never spreads from one person to another by sexual contact, blood transfusions or other means. HIV is indeed a contagion, but that’s not the whole story.        I do think that HIV is different from other viruses in that transfer of only a few HIV viruses probably isn’t enough to cause serious disease. Heterogeneity of HIV is a major factor in causing the disease, and that means that there must be transfer of a number (perhaps quite a large number) of viruses and that a certain minimum degree of variability must be present. In sexual reproduction the function of meiosis is to produce a great deal of variability so that natural selection can choose and the fittest may survive—firstly, the fittest sperm cells, then the fittest fertilized eggs, and so on. Early on in AIDS research it was noticed that HIV had much higher rate of variability than other retroviruses (B.H. Hahn, et. al, Science, Vol. 232, No. 4757, page 1548, June 20, 1986). This paper was written by some of the same authors as the paper that said that SIV jumped from chimps to humans.                 CONTINUE

Are all viruses male?

(Above) "A Hierarchy of Emotions" by David Gaus