Nanobacteria in clouds could spread disease, scientists claim
April 6, 2005 | Source: KurzweilAI
Micro-organisms in clouds could play a crucial role in the spread of disease and in the formation of rain drops, scientists have claimed.
The radical theories about nanobacteria — micro-organisms considerably smaller than ordinary bacteria — in clouds are published in two recent articles in the Journal of Proteome Research.
The scientists say nanobacteria are now accepted as being widely prevalent in the terrestrial environment and suggest that nanobacteria’s involvement in several serious diseases such as the formation kidney stones, heart disease, and HIV is also slowly being recognised by the scientific community.
The scientists argue that their occurrence in clouds could play a crucial role in the global dispersal of infective agents, and might also play a prominent role in the nucleation of cloud drops.