They also discovered that these infected cells replicate the Zika virus, posing potential treatment problems, and that the virus is directly interfering with cell growth and function. Researchers have identified the mechanism on how the virus infects cells in the brain. The cells were sent to a lab at Florida State University that infected them with Zika.
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– Today the CDC released information about nine pregnant travelers, now in the US, with confirmed cases of Zika virus. Health officials warn that Zika may be related to the birth defect microcephaly and urge pregnant women to avoid travel to countries hard-hit with the disease, including many South and Central American countries.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), a person with Zika virus disease usually have symptoms that can include mild fever, skin rashes, conjunctivitis, muscle and joint pain, malaise or headache which normally last for two to seven days. The ailment results in an abnormally small head in newborns and is associated with various disorders including decreased brain development.
The study, performed by dozens of scientists led by Hengli Tang, a virologist at Florida State Univeristy and Guo-li Ming, neurologist in Johns Hopkins was conducted in four laboratories in Johns Hopkins University, Florida State University and Emory University.
This is the first confirmed case of Zika virus infection reported in a Missouri resident.
Latin America and the Caribbean have been hit with mosquito-borne Zika outbreaks in the previous year.
Eight of the women in the study have delivered babies, including the two stillbirths and two who appeared healthy.
Much remains unknown about Zika, including whether the virus actually causes microcephaly. Researchers say the Zika virus may be linked to a wider variety of ¿grave outcomes¿ for developing babies than previously reported and that threats can come at any stage of pregnancy. But recently, it has recently is blamed for causing a spike in the birth defect called microcephaly-babies born with smaller heads and developmental delays.
Forty-two of those women, as well as 16 women who did not test positive for Zika, underwent ultrasounds to examine their fetuses.
The mosquito-borne virus infects a kind of neural stem cell that goes on to form the cerebral cortex, the brain’s outer layer responsible for intellectual capabilities and higher mental functions, the study showed.
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Although this is an early study, it shows the mechanism by which the virus works in certain cells, he said. However, no strong associations between Zika and microcephaly has been found yet. Zika virus is likely to be transmitted and detected in other countries within the geographical range of competent mosquito vectors, especially Aedes aegypti. The stems cells can result in cell death or disrupt cell growth, the study found.
