Issue 3, 2006

Nanobioaerosols—reconsidering agricultural irrigation in a warming world

Abstract

Nanobacteria are best described as 60–300 nm nanovesicles. In the body they collect calcium and phosphate to form apatite, adhere to cells, or invade them—processes regulated by a slime based on proteins (primordial proteins). A versatile functionality realized with a minimum of properties equips nanobacteria with a unique survival potential. They were identified in humans, animals, wastewater and the stratosphere. In South Africa they were detected in people infected with HIV. Models indicate that they boost the genetic diversity of the HIV-1 virus. Experiments showed that they are excreted via urine, explaining their presence in the environment. Eradication would be virtually impossible if they had an extraterrestrial origin, implying a permanent bombardment from space. Whereas the biological status of nanobacteria is still not clarified, we postulate here that the native habitat of nanobacteria are mammals, suggesting that at least modern species have their origin on Earth. The thesis results from mapping functions and properties of the slime, and could facilitate the localisation of nanobacterial reservoirs, identification of local distribution routes and tracking of global transport cycles. Agricultural irrigation with water containing excreta from humans infected with nanobacteria could be a central disseminator of the nanobioaerosols.

Graphical abstract: Nanobioaerosols—reconsidering agricultural irrigation in a warming world

Article information

Article type
Perspective
Submitted
06 Sep 2005
Accepted
21 Dec 2005
First published
13 Jan 2006

J. Environ. Monit., 2006,8, 341-346

Nanobioaerosols—reconsidering agricultural irrigation in a warming world

A. P. Sommer and A. E. Pavláth, J. Environ. Monit., 2006, 8, 341 DOI: 10.1039/B512496D

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