The agency said its decision to expand blood screening in the United States was based on concerns about more cases of local transmission in Florida.
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The virus has swept through Latin America, the Caribbean and beyond since 2015, prompting the World Health Organisation (WHO) to declare an worldwide public health emergency in February this year.
In Brazil, Zika virus has been linked to more than 1,800 cases of microcephaly, and USA officials expect as many as 270 cases in Puerto Rico.
“The findings should significantly advance current Zika virus research and have an immediate effect on the development of anti-Zika therapeutics”, the team concluded.
In the next four weeks, SC and 10 other states should begin screening blood donations for the Zika virus, following a U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommendation. This guidance has already been implemented in infected areas in Florida, as well as in Puerto Rico and other affected territories, and has proven successful in identifying contaminated blood components.
What is the Zika virus?
After screening thousands of drugs already approved or undergoing clinical trials, researchers have identified two groups of compounds that can treat Zika virus infections in two ways. Potential treatments for Ebola and Hepatitis C were also discovered using such methods. There have been cases of Zika transmission through blood transfusion in Brazil.
For more about the Zika virus, head to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Of the latest confirmed cases, 17 cases live or work in the Sims Drive/Aljunied Crescent area and five live or work in Kallang Way and Paya Lebar Way, north of Sims Drive/Aljunied, said the MOH and NEA. The symptoms include fever, rash, joint pain and red eyes. Doctors recommended blood testing in all 50 states, but many agree Southern states, particularly those closest to Florida, are vital.
SC confirmed 43 cases of Zika related to travel as of Friday, according to the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control. Blood centers in the USA are now using this test to screen samples.
The tropical mosquito that spreads Zika and other viruses is found along the southern United States.
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The rising number of the mosquito-borne disease cases in Florida worries the FDA, because there is a great chance that it can accidentally be infused in pregnant women and increase the risk of their unborn child to have serious birth defects. Friday’s directive lists 11 states – Alabama, Arizona, California, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, New York, South Carolina and Texas – that will need to begin screening blood in the next month due to their location or because of the influx of travelers from Zika outbreak countries.
