For every infection, a reaction.

Originally posted on "Science Innovation Union (SIU)" blog (SIU reviews section): http://science-union.org/ Authors: Antonio Gregorio Dias Jr ( agregorio.diasjr@rdm.ox.ac.uk) Layal Liverpool (layal.liverpool@imm.ox.ac.uk) Edition: Ines Barreiros (SIU editorial team) “Deu zika!” is a popular expression in Brazil to indicate something unpleasant has happened. But Zika is of course also a virus transmitted by mosquitoes that has recently become notorious for its ability to infect pregnant women and affect foetal development. In the context of the current Zika outbreak, scientists all over the world have been studying this virus, while the search for treatments and vaccines is an ongoing progress. According to a recent report by the World Health Organisation (WHO), 70 countries and territories have identified cases of Zika since 2007. In approximately 20 of these countries, Zika virus infection has been associated with improper foetal brain development as well as a rar...

For a long time, “deu zika” has been a very popular expression in Brazil to indicate something has gone wrong - often meant as a joke. For example, as a Brazilian, I could say “deu zika” when referring to the Germany X Brazil World Cup 2014 football match. Ironically, after the games, Brazilians discovered an actual virus named Zika existed and was circulating in the country. No longer funny to hear, Zika virus (ZIKV) soon became an international public health concern for unborn babies. The Latin American health authorities, World Health Organization (WHO), and Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, USA) reported that the new circulating virus was able to infect pregnant women and affect the foetal development. However, the latter claim had to be formally supported with experimental evidence. Now, scientists have been able to achieve this by infecting animal models, such as mice, with the virus. Here we discuss the findings of two independent research groups from United States...