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Good questions Ironyak.
It’s not surprising there is a large number of similar blast results with high identity % ... this is something you would suspect for certain conserved sequences that are common among many viruses - or indeed many forms of life (an unrelated example: many organisms use heat shock proteins to aid in the proper folding of proteins and finding a heat shock protein in viruses, bacteria, snakes, humans, etc would not be uncommon). My point here being that the enormous number of matches is not surprising at all when blasting a short sequence.
A lot of times you don’t need to have a fully functional sequence that expresses a protein (think DNA > (transcribe) RNA > (translate) Amino Acid chain of protein) in order to have a functional or active site. I don’t know enough about the genes or open reading frames of 2019-nCov to be able to know for sure, but altering just a few amino acids of a functional protein like say a spike or glycoprotein of the capsids shell could be enough to alter the host range. The point here being that even such a tiny change could make a profound difference.
Another huge takeaway from Dr. Cottrell’s little talk is that the (Indian) paper focused on only four of the insertions - but there were many more. I’m more worried about the unknown than the known at this point - what other insertions have been made and in what genes ? (we know the replicase at least so far)
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Too much panic in the market now. 8 hrs we will see if the fear continues. Apple closed stores, major car manufacturers closed in China, manufacturing grinding to a halt. Borders being closed, massive travel restrictions. This is having a much quicker negative impact than anyone could’ve predicted. Although with this hiv discussion, Merck, gilead sciences and Glaxo smith kline might be worth watching for a bump or two.
6 confirmed cases in California aren’t going to ease any fears I’m afraid.
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rainyjim - My point here being that the enormous number of matches is not surprising at all when blasting a short sequence.
Well that's really one of the major problems with the paper. The short sequences match hundreds or thousands of organisms. There is no reason to choose HIV (much less three different HIV strains) out of all the possible choices as the match. It's like saying the latest Stephen King novel took material from the Bible because it contains the word "the". What evidence do you actually see that nCov was engineered?
Another huge takeaway from Dr. Cottrell’s little talk is that the (Indian) paper focused on only four of the insertions - but there were many more.
Yeah, you might want to spend a little more time evaluating this source. When he talks about how he knew from the beginning it was engineered and how he's more up to date than Dave Hodges Common Sense and Alex Jones Infowars, the shows he watches to keep up with New World Order stuff, it gves me pause. Unless of course these views are part of your mindset so it's supportive evidence for you?
https://youtu.be/xEzTHfEgr_w?t=47
islandlvng - Although with this hiv discussion, Merck, gilead sciences and Glaxo smith kline might be worth watching for a bump or two.
Given it's lopinavir, ritonavir, and oseltamivir being discussed maybe check Abbott, Abbvie, and whoever is making Tamiflu these days (Genentech/Rosche?)
PS It looks like Ascletis is Chinese for Abbott 
https://yicaiglobal.com/news/ascletis-ph...recoveries
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Hi Ironyak,
I just learned who this guy was, I have in no way condoned anything he’s said throughout his life on any topic - other than the analysis of insertions into the 2019-nCov strain. I don’t really care to debate everything someone has ever said with you - anyways just trying to stay on subject of the virus - I agree with some of the stuff you mentioned about him sounds crazy but it’s also way off topic and doesn’t really change anything about the virus itself - it just casts doubt upon an individual who you happened to disagree with and not their ideas. Hmm, somehow I’m sure you know the word for that!
Being a small/short sequence does not preclude a prior origin of anything. I see what you are saying about it being a leap to assume it’s HIV (while at the same time recognizing people are now walking away cured after using HIV drugs) but it’s an equal leap to say it’s not HIV, ergo I don’t really see your logic to be compelling.
FWIW, extremely short sequences can still make drastic changes in a genome. As I said before - it’s too soon to say for sure but it looks like 2019-nCov was engineered in a lab.
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Ok rainyjim, he offers no proof it was engineered (as he knew it all along), makes wild claims about the karmatic importance of the date 2/1 in NY (although NY still has no confirmed cases) and out-doing infowars (all the past couple days), the HIV paper has been withdrawn as there are 1000 other more likely explanations, but somehow 2019-nCov still looks engineered in a lab to you... Everyone is going to believe what they want to believe, I guess.
If you want some evidence against the bioweapon theory, give this a go:
https://twitter.com/trvrb/status/1224208183360491520
"Observed mutations are consistent with natural evolution."
(In the wheelhouse analogy, not only is this paper in his wheelhouse, he helps build and maintain some of the more interesting parts of the wheelhouse, including coronavirus genomic trees:
https://nextstrain.org/groups/blab/sars-like-cov)
As for the "HIV drugs", they are also used in the treatment of hepatitis C, influenza A & B, H5N1 bird flu, and H1N1 swine flu, and have been shown to combat HPV and SARS. In short, they are anti-viral drugs so it makes sense why they may help with a novel coronavirus. But again, like you know, whatevs...
https://slate.com/human-interest/2020/01...story.html
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Gilead sciences opened with a 4.50 jump up in price open bell. 1.50 off of its 52 week high. 1 of 3 I mentioned. 13% jump, not a coincidence.
https://www.fool.com/investing/2020/02/0...today.aspx
Interesting article on why and “what” maybe coming ahead for Gilead and ncov.
Rinse, wash, repeat.
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Ironyak, Look at what Dr. Paul has to say and think about it as merely a piece to a puzzle. I think you are trying to complete the puzzle with what he is saying. Wrong way to look at it buddy. He is filling in a couple of pieces, that’s all.
It’s called brainstorming, evaluating the current and changing situation. Exactly what he seems to be doing.
If the battery dies on your car, do you only change the battery? Or do you look into other possibilities? Wiring? Too much load, amps or lighting? Alternator? Sometimes it’s best to go deeper than just changing out a dead battery.......
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When the battery dies on my car, I don't consult the I Ching, or construct theories on who sabotaged my car and is trying to kill me. But perhaps I'm just scanning the evidence too lightly...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDaDBMROd9c
Gilead sciences opened with a 4.50 jump up in price open bell
Interestingly based largely on a single U.S. patient for evidence of effectiveness of its remdesivir (antiviral made for treating ebola, for which it was recently found to not really be that effective) Hopefully it actually does some good, and this isn't just Gilead trying out a new market strategy - not that the market hype would care either way.
https://www.fiercebiotech.com/biotech/gi...hina-virus
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Hmm Ironyak I can’t tell if we are discussing a virus or which one of us is wrong or right? Can you tell either?
Anyways. I feel the virus was probably engineered because of my analysis of the available sequences in GenBank - this happens to concur with at least some of the analysis made by Dr. Cottrell. That’s it. You seem to be operating under the assumption that I have some trust or my understanding of 2019-nCov is limited to Dr. Cottrell’s viewpoints. I don’t and it’s not.
I hope you can take something away from this discussion besides “I am right and you are wrong”. Keep in mind I (a trained scientist in the virology field) have been saying all along that it’s too soon to know anything for certain and we need more information to be sure of anything. Conversely you (I’m not sure of any professional training you have in this matter) seem to be 100% sure of yourself or at least that you know what the virus is or isn’t. I wonder why this is?
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Great posts from rainyjim and islandlvng, keep it up please and the links islandlvng are much appreciated. And wow a virologist in the house! If anything Puna has some very resourceful people. Continue to share your thoughts it's very therapeutic for us non-scientists trying to negotiate and wade thru all the sensationalist garbage news during this crisis. Could be a small crisis or it could be gigantic, the uncertainty is quite stressful. Being in the hospitality industry I'm already concerned if tourism isn't going to slow down do to Honolulu being a China flight port of entry. And our shopping might be greatly curtailed due to all the factory shut downs in China. So much to consider. Again thanks.
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