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Virology Apr 2020Zika Virus (ZIKV) is a Flavivirus transmitted primarily via the bite of infected Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Globally, 87 countries and territories have recorded... (Review)
Review
Zika Virus (ZIKV) is a Flavivirus transmitted primarily via the bite of infected Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Globally, 87 countries and territories have recorded autochthonous mosquito-borne transmission of ZIKV as at July 2019 and distributed across four of the six WHO Regions. Outbreaks of ZIKV infection peaked in 2016 and declined substantially throughout 2017 and 2018 in the Americas region. There is the likely risk for ZIKV to spread to more countries. There is also the potential for the re-emergence of ZIKV in all places with prior reports of the virus transmission. The current status of ZIKV transmission and spread is, however, a global health threat, and from the aforementioned, has the potential to re-emerge as an epidemic. This review summarizes the past and present spread of ZIKV outbreak-2007-2019, the genome, transmission cycle, clinical manifestations, vaccine and antiviral drug advancement.
Topics: Antiviral Agents; Brazil; Cabo Verde; Disease Outbreaks; Female; Genome, Viral; Humans; Male; Mosquito Vectors; Pacific Islands; Viral Vaccines; Zika Virus; Zika Virus Infection
PubMed: 32056845
DOI: 10.1016/j.virol.2020.01.015 -
Emerging Infectious Diseases Jul 2016Zika virus is a mosquitoborne flavivirus that is the focus of an ongoing pandemic and public health emergency. Previously limited to sporadic cases in Africa and Asia,... (Review)
Review
Zika virus is a mosquitoborne flavivirus that is the focus of an ongoing pandemic and public health emergency. Previously limited to sporadic cases in Africa and Asia, the emergence of Zika virus in Brazil in 2015 heralded rapid spread throughout the Americas. Although most Zika virus infections are characterized by subclinical or mild influenza-like illness, severe manifestations have been described, including Guillain-Barre syndrome in adults and microcephaly in babies born to infected mothers. Neither an effective treatment nor a vaccine is available for Zika virus; therefore, the public health response primarily focuses on preventing infection, particularly in pregnant women. Despite growing knowledge about this virus, questions remain regarding the virus's vectors and reservoirs, pathogenesis, genetic diversity, and potential synergistic effects of co-infection with other circulating viruses. These questions highlight the need for research to optimize surveillance, patient management, and public health intervention in the current Zika virus epidemic.
Topics: Humans; Zika Virus; Zika Virus Infection
PubMed: 27070380
DOI: 10.3201/eid2207.151990 -
Clinical Microbiology Reviews Jul 2016Zika virus (ZIKV) is an arthropod-borne virus (arbovirus) in the genus Flavivirus and the family Flaviviridae. ZIKV was first isolated from a nonhuman primate in 1947... (Review)
Review
Zika virus (ZIKV) is an arthropod-borne virus (arbovirus) in the genus Flavivirus and the family Flaviviridae. ZIKV was first isolated from a nonhuman primate in 1947 and from mosquitoes in 1948 in Africa, and ZIKV infections in humans were sporadic for half a century before emerging in the Pacific and the Americas. ZIKV is usually transmitted by the bite of infected mosquitoes. The clinical presentation of Zika fever is nonspecific and can be misdiagnosed as other infectious diseases, especially those due to arboviruses such as dengue and chikungunya. ZIKV infection was associated with only mild illness prior to the large French Polynesian outbreak in 2013 and 2014, when severe neurological complications were reported, and the emergence in Brazil of a dramatic increase in severe congenital malformations (microcephaly) suspected to be associated with ZIKV. Laboratory diagnosis of Zika fever relies on virus isolation or detection of ZIKV-specific RNA. Serological diagnosis is complicated by cross-reactivity among members of the Flavivirus genus. The adaptation of ZIKV to an urban cycle involving humans and domestic mosquito vectors in tropical areas where dengue is endemic suggests that the incidence of ZIKV infections may be underestimated. There is a high potential for ZIKV emergence in urban centers in the tropics that are infested with competent mosquito vectors such as Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus.
Topics: Animals; Disease Outbreaks; Early Diagnosis; Humans; Insect Vectors; Phylogeny; Urban Renewal; Zika Virus; Zika Virus Infection
PubMed: 27029595
DOI: 10.1128/CMR.00072-15 -
The Journal of Infectious Diseases Dec 2017The emergence of Zika virus (ZIKV) as a major public health threat has focused research on understanding virus biology and developing a suite of strategies for disease... (Review)
Review
The emergence of Zika virus (ZIKV) as a major public health threat has focused research on understanding virus biology and developing a suite of strategies for disease intervention. Recent advances in cryoelectron microscopy have accelerated structure-function studies of flaviviruses and of ZIKV in particular. Structures of the mature and immature ZIKV have demonstrated its similarity with other known flaviviruses such as dengue and West Nile viruses. However, ZIKV's unique pathobiology demands an explanation of how its structure, although similar to its flavivirus relatives, is sufficiently unique to address questions of receptor specificity, transmission, and antigenicity. Progress in defining the immunodominant epitopes and how neutralizing antibodies bind to them will provide great insight as vaccines progress through clinical trials. Identification of host receptors will substantially illuminate the interesting ZIKV tropism and provide insights into pathogenesis. Although the answers to all of these questions are not yet available, rapid progress in combining structural biology with other techniques is revealing the similarities and the differences in virion structure and function between ZIKV and related flaviviruses.
Topics: Antibodies, Neutralizing; Antibodies, Viral; Cryoelectron Microscopy; Epitopes; Flavivirus; Humans; Immunogenicity, Vaccine; Virion; Zika Virus; Zika Virus Infection
PubMed: 29267925
DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jix515 -
Microbes and Infection 2019Since the ZIKV outbreak in Brazil in 2015, the scientific community has joined efforts to gather more information on the epidemiology, clinical features and... (Review)
Review
Since the ZIKV outbreak in Brazil in 2015, the scientific community has joined efforts to gather more information on the epidemiology, clinical features and pathogenicity of the virus. Here, we summarize the most important advances made recently and discuss promising, innovative approaches to understand and control ZIKV infection.
Topics: Animals; Antiviral Agents; Arboviruses; Brazil; Humans; Immunity, Innate; Mosquito Vectors; Viral Vaccines; Zika Virus; Zika Virus Infection
PubMed: 31158508
DOI: 10.1016/j.micinf.2019.04.005 -
Annual Review of Neuroscience Jul 2019In 2015, public awareness of Zika virus (ZIKV) rose in response to alarming statistics of infants with microcephaly being born to women who were infected with the virus... (Review)
Review
In 2015, public awareness of Zika virus (ZIKV) rose in response to alarming statistics of infants with microcephaly being born to women who were infected with the virus during pregnancy, triggering global concern over these potentially devastating consequences. Although we have discovered a great deal about the genome and pathogenesis of this reemergent flavivirus since this recent outbreak, we still have much more to learn, including the nature of the virus-host interactions and mechanisms that determine its tropism and pathogenicity in the nervous system, which are in turn shaped by the continual evolution of the virus. Inevitably, we will find out more about the potential long-term effects of ZIKV exposure on the nervous system from ongoing longitudinal studies. Integrating clinical and epidemiological data with a wider range of animal and human cell culture models will be critical to understanding the pathogenetic mechanisms and developing more specific antiviral compounds and vaccines.
Topics: Adult; Animals; Brain; Cells, Cultured; Communicable Diseases, Emerging; Disease Outbreaks; Female; Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; Gene Expression Regulation, Viral; Genetic Vectors; Host Microbial Interactions; Humans; Infant, Newborn; Macaca mulatta; Mice; Microbiota; Microcephaly; Microglia; Models, Animal; Nervous System Diseases; Neurogenesis; Pregnancy; Pregnancy Complications, Infectious; Receptors, Virus; Twin Studies as Topic; Viral Vaccines; Zika Virus; Zika Virus Infection
PubMed: 31283901
DOI: 10.1146/annurev-neuro-080317-062231 -
Cell May 2016The recent Zika virus outbreak highlights the need for low-cost diagnostics that can be rapidly developed for distribution and use in pandemic regions. Here, we report a...
The recent Zika virus outbreak highlights the need for low-cost diagnostics that can be rapidly developed for distribution and use in pandemic regions. Here, we report a pipeline for the rapid design, assembly, and validation of cell-free, paper-based sensors for the detection of the Zika virus RNA genome. By linking isothermal RNA amplification to toehold switch RNA sensors, we detect clinically relevant concentrations of Zika virus sequences and demonstrate specificity against closely related Dengue virus sequences. When coupled with a novel CRISPR/Cas9-based module, our sensors can discriminate between viral strains with single-base resolution. We successfully demonstrate a simple, field-ready sample-processing workflow and detect Zika virus from the plasma of a viremic macaque. Our freeze-dried biomolecular platform resolves important practical limitations to the deployment of molecular diagnostics in the field and demonstrates how synthetic biology can be used to develop diagnostic tools for confronting global health crises. PAPERCLIP.
Topics: Animals; Blood; Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats; Computer Simulation; Dengue; Genetic Techniques; Macaca mulatta; Molecular Diagnostic Techniques; RNA, Viral; Zika Virus; Zika Virus Infection
PubMed: 27160350
DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2016.04.059 -
Emerging Infectious Diseases Jun 2014
Topics: Animals; Disease Outbreaks; Humans; Macaca mulatta; Micronesia; Polynesia; Primate Diseases; Terminology as Topic; Uganda; Zika Virus; Zika Virus Infection
PubMed: 24983096
DOI: 10.3201/eid2006.et2006 -
The Journal of Infectious Diseases Dec 2017The emergence of Zika virus in Brazil and its association with microcephaly and Guillain-Barré syndrome led to accelerated vaccine development efforts. Based on prior... (Review)
Review
The emergence of Zika virus in Brazil and its association with microcephaly and Guillain-Barré syndrome led to accelerated vaccine development efforts. Based on prior flavivirus vaccine development programs, knowledge of flavivirus particle structure, definition of E dimers as the key antigenic target, and deep understanding of neutralizing mechanisms, multiple vaccine strategies have advanced to the stage of clinical evaluation with unprecedented speed. These include nucleic acid (DNA and messenger RNA), whole-inactivated virus, live-attenuated or chimeric virus, and protein or viruslike particle vaccines. Within a year from the declaration by the World Health Organization of Zika virus as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, multiple vaccine candidates entered clinical trials, now totaling 7 products with an additional 40-plus candidate vaccines in preclinical development. The rapid progress in vaccine development demonstrates the capacity of governments, public health organizations, and the scientific community to respond to pandemic threats when sufficient prior knowledge exists, emergency funding is made available, and interagency cooperation is achieved and serves as a paradigm for preparing for future emerging infectious diseases.
Topics: Humans; Public Health; Viral Vaccines; Zika Virus; Zika Virus Infection
PubMed: 29267918
DOI: 10.1093/infdis/jix464 -
Pathogens and Global Health 2016
Topics: Female; Humans; Pregnancy; Pregnancy Complications, Infectious; Viral Vaccines; Zika Virus; Zika Virus Infection
PubMed: 27905267
DOI: 10.1080/20477724.2016.1255374