Subject: Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 17-04-10 From: "HR-Net News Distribution Manager" CONTENTS [01] Examining committee on involvement of former minister in armaments procurement kickbacks to start immediately [02] PM Tsipras undermines the Greek people's future, says ND spokesman Kikilias [03] Scientists discover new group of giant viruses --------------------------------------------------------------------------- [01] Examining committee on involvement of former minister in armaments procurement kickbacks to start immediately Nikos Paraskevopoulos, the president of the examinining committee that will investigate whether former Defence Minister Yiannos Papantoniou was involved in kickbacks regarding an armaments procurement programme, on Monday in statements to the Athens Macedonian News Agency's (ANA) radio station Praktoreio 104.9 FM said that the committee will convene immediately. Asked if the proceedings become time-barred, he underlined that it depends on the duration of the offence. "If the acts of the politician under investigation continue until today, he will be punished". Moreover, he said that other corruption cases are currently under investigation as the Novartis scandal. "We will wait to see the results" noted Paraskevopoulos. [02] PM Tsipras undermines the Greek people's future, says ND spokesman Kikilias Main opposition New Democracy (ND) spokesman Vassilis Kikilias on Monday sternly attacked Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras accusing him of undermining the Greek people's future for many years and attempting to bring a new memorandum. In his statement Kikilias noted that the prime minister finally attempts to complete the second review in the worst possible way, with a new memorandum and high taxation and pension cuts. "It is the first time that a governement takes measures without safeguarding a single euro for financing. With his obsessions and uneffficiency, Tsipras undermines the future of the Greek people for many years," noted Kikilias. [03] Scientists discover new group of giant viruses Scientists from the US and Austria, including a Greek microbiologist, discovered a group of giant viruses that they named "Klosneuviruses". The first giant virus, Mimivirus, was discovered in 2003 by a team of French microbiologists. Since then these micro-organisms that are considerably bigger that the common viruses deeply attract the scientists who in the meanwhile have found more groups of such viruses (Mamavirus, Megavirus and Pithovirus). The study of the new mega-virus indicates that the giant viruses appear to have evolved from smaller viruses by gaining (or stealing), in their evolution course, hundreds of genes from other cells when the common viruses have only a few number of genes (HIV or AIDS virus has only nine genes when the Mimivirus 1,018 and the Klonsneuvirus approximately 700 genes).