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Help an International Research Team Fight the Zika Virus

Few people had heard of the Zika virus before 2015, when it began rapidly spreading in the Americas, particularly in Brazil. The virus is mostly spread by mosquitoes, although sexual and blood transmission are also possible. Some pregnant women who have contracted the Zika virus have given birth to infants with a condition called microcephaly, which results in severe brain development issues. In other cases, adults and children who contract the Zika virus have suffered paralysis and other neurological problems.

 

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Zika Virus Image (Copyright John Liebler, www.ArtoftheCell.com. All rights reserved. Used by permission.)

Currently, there is no treatment for the Zika virus and no vaccine. Given that Zika has quickly become an international public health concern, my team and I are working with researchers here in Brazil as well as in the United States to look for possible treatments, and we are using IBM World Community Grid to accelerate our project.

Brazil is vulnerable to a number of neglected diseases, such as denguemalaria, leishmaniasis, schistosomiasis, and others. My greatest desire is to find treatments
to improve the lives of thousands of people throughout the world who suffer from
these diseases.

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Experimental drug against hepatitis C slows down Zika virus infection in mice

Virologists from KU Leuven, Belgium, have shown that an experimental antiviral drug against hepatitis C slows down the development of Zika in mice. The research team was led by Professor Johan Neyts from the Laboratory of Virology and Chemotherapy.

“The Zika virus is transmitted by the tiger mosquito. Roughly twenty percent of the people who are infected actually get sick,” explains Professor Neyts. “The most common symptoms, which last about a week, are fever, fatigue, joint and muscle pain, rash, and red eyes. A small number of infected people go on to develop Guillain-Barré Syndrome, which causes muscle weakness and temporary paralysis. In some cases, the patient needs to be put on a ventilator.”

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Zika virus may reach Europe this summer

The Zika virus could spread to Europe this summer, although the likelihood of an outbreak is low to moderate, the World Health Organization has said. Areas most at risk are those where Aedes mosquitoes may spread the virus, like the Black Sea coast of Russia and Georgia and the island of Madeira. Countries with a moderate risk include France, Spain, Italy and Greece, while the risk in the UK is low. The UN agency is not issuing any new travel advice at this time.

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An Infectious cDNA Clone of Zika Virus to Study Viral Virulence, Mosquito Transmission, and Antiviral Inhibitors

We report an infectious cDNA clone of ZIKV that was generated using a clinical isolate of the Asian lineage. The cDNA clone-derived RNA is infectious in cells, generating recombinant ZIKV. The recombinant virus is virulent in established ZIKV mouse models, leading to neurological signs relevant to human disease. Additionally, recombinant ZIKV is infectious for Aedes aegypti and thus provides a means to examine virus transmission. The infectious cDNA clone was further used to generate a luciferase ZIKV that exhibited sensitivity to a panflavivirus inhibitor, highlighting its potential utility for antiviral screening. This ZIKV reverse genetic system, together with mouse and mosquito infection models, may help identify viral determinants of human virulence and mosquito transmission as well as inform vaccine and therapeutic strategies.

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The crystal structure of Zika virus helicase: basis for antiviral drug design

Here we report the crystal structure of ZIKV helicase NS3 at 1.8-Å resolution. The helicase structure revealed a conserved triphosphate pocket critical for nonspecific hydrolysis of nucleoside triphosphates across multiple flavivirus species. A positive-charged tunnel has been identified in the viral helicase, which is potentially responsible for accommodating the RNA. This crystal structure of ZIKV helicase provides an accurate model for rational drug design against ZIKV infection.

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Combined proteome and transcriptome analyses reveal that Zika virus circulating in Brazil alters cell cycle and neurogenic programmes in human neurospheres

Combined proteomics and mRNA transcriptional profile analyses showed that Brazilian ZIKV, prior to induce cell death, alters cell cycle and halts neurogenic programmes, in addition to regulate transcription and protein translation due to viral replication. These results point to biological mechanisms potentially implicated in brain malformations as a result of ZIKV congenital infection.

 

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Zika Virus Disrupts Neural Progenitor Development and Leads to Microcephaly in Mice

A trio of mouse studies published today (May 11) provides some of the strongest evidence yet that Zika virus infection can cause birth defects. Researchers at the University of São Paulo in Brazil and their colleagues reported in Nature that the Brazilian strain of the virus could cross the placentas of pregnant mice, resulting in microcephaly in developing embryos. Meanwhile, researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences reported similar findings in Cell Stem Cell after having studied a different infection route. And researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis found that Zika can infect pregnant, immune-deficient mice and their fetuses, causing restricted growth and fetal death; their findings were published in Cell.

Zika Causes Microcephaly in Mice | The Scientist Magazine®

Three studies show that the virus can cause birth defects in mouse embryos.

By Tanya Lewis | May 11, 2016

Three studies show that the virus can cause birth defects in mouse embryos.

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Zika Virus Damages Placenta, Kills Fetal Mice

NIH-Funded Scientists Detail Tissue Destruction Caused by Zika Virus During Pregnancy.

Media Availability: Zika Virus Damages Placenta, Kills Fetal Mice

For Immediate Release: Wednesday, May 11, 2016

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Combating Zika

Combating Zika virus

To stop the spread of Zika and prevent other infectious disease outbreaks,USAID launched Combating Zika and Future Threats: A Grand Challenge for Development. The challenge calls upon the global innovator community to generate cutting-edge approaches to fight the current Zika outbreak and to help strengthen the world’s response to infectious diseases in the future.

Combating Zika | Grand Challenge for Development | U.S. Agency for International Development

Last updated: May 11, 2016

To stop the spread of Zika and prevent other infectious disease outbreaks, USAID launched Combating Zika and Future Threats: A Grand Challenge for Development. USAID is calling for the global innovator community to generate cutting-edge technologies and approaches to fight Zika in the near term and to help strengthen the world’s response to infectious diseases in the future.

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Adding Zika Virus to the FDA Priority Review Voucher Program Act

This bill amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to add the Zika virus to the list of tropical diseases under the priority review voucher program, which awards a voucher to the sponsor of a new drug or biological product that is approved to prevent or treat a tropical disease. (A voucher entitles the holder to have a future new drug or biological product application acted upon by the Food and Drug Administration within six months.)

114th Congress (2015-2016): Adding Zika Virus to the FDA Priority Review Voucher Program Act | Congress.gov | Library of Congress

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