The "Hunter" Theory, The OPV Theory, and The Conspiracy Theory all give various accounts as to how HIV originated and the cause of HIV. Both the "Hunter" theory and the OPV theory include the idea that HIV is a mutated form of SIV which is found in chimpanzees in Cameroon. However, the "Hunter" theory dates back further which explains earlier cases than the OPV theory does. Also, the "Hunter" theory accounts for there being various strands of HIV while OPV doesn't. The Conspiracy theory seems completely bogus to me and from reading that brief paragraph on it, it does not appear to have any factual information backing it so I'm kind of confused as to why it is even considered a legitimate theory. If the conspiracy theory were true then why are there different strands of HIV in the world today, and how is it linked to the chimpanzee disease SIV?
Clearly I do not think that the conspiracy theory is very plausible at all. However, both the OPV and the "Hunter" theory seem quite plausible. I understand that the OPV theory does not account for earlier cases of HIV, but I'm curious as to how certain researchers are that there were earlier cases of HIV. It seems that with our limited knowledge of HIV that both explanations are plausible.
I do think it is important for people to continue researching the beginnings of HIV. In order for us to fully understand its mutations and developments within the human species, we have to know where it started. Also, discovering more information on the origins of this disease could help lead to better treatment, preventions methods, or maybe even a cure.
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I agree with you that the hunter theory is one of the more plausible attempts at an origin and I do understand your thoughts on how the conspiracy theory is even considered, but I feel I must interject with the reasoning behind the theory.
ReplyDeleteAs we learned in class, the Tuskegee study completely demolished any form of trust between the U.S. government (at least as far as health care is concerned) and obviously there are enough people who live in fear of this sort of biological warfare against their populations to make this a legitimate theory.
That said, I do believe that with a little more research on behalf of these theorists, most would agree that the most plausible origin of disease would be through zoonosis.