Scientists uncover how Zika virus causes microcephaly stat : Jamaica Observer

"However, the effect that the Zika virus had on the ability of stem cells to develop into specialised cells differed between donors. They focused on the impact of the Asian lineage Zika virus that was involved in the first outbreak in North America in late 2015. The researchers established a method of investigating how Zika alters the production, survival and maturation of brain stem cells using cells donated from three human foetal brains. A multidisciplinary team from The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) at Galveston has uncovered the mechanisms that the Zika virus uses to alter brain development. Recently, the UTMB team found that only the Asian lineage has been linked with microcephaly.




"However, the effect that the Zika virus had on the ability of stem cells to develop into specialised cells differed between donors. They focused on the impact of the Asian lineage Zika virus that was involved in the first outbreak in North America in late 2015. There are currently 70 countries and territories reporting active Zika transmission, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). There are currently 70 countries and territories reporting active Zika transmission, according to WHO. Scientists have uncovered the mechanisms that the Zika virus uses to alter brain development, an advance that may unravel the mysteries of why the infection causes birth defects.


The District of Columbia Department of Forensic Sciences Public Health Laboratory has tested hundreds of people, mainly pregnant women, for the Zika virus since last year. Already, samples taken from two pregnant women, who originally tested negative for the virus, have now tested positive for likely Zika infection. The CDC is treating the patients who tested positive as though they tested positive for the Zika virus out of caution and for monitoring. In pregnant women, the virus has been found to be associated with fetal development issues and can cause birth defects including microcephaly, which is characterized by an abnormally small head. Officials at a Washington D.C. public health lab confirmed to ABC News that they are retesting hundreds of samples from people in the area for Zika virus over concerns about the accuracy of the original test results.



collected by :Lucy William
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