Zika Virus News and Research

Latest Zika Virus News and Research

Stable vaccines using microscopic crystals from cypovirus

Scientists at Cell Guidance Systems, Cambridge University and Imperial College are exploiting microscopic crystals, made by a cypovirus, to produce stable vaccines for diseases that mostly affect the world's poorest people.

From Cell Guidance Systems 21 Aug 2017

FDA provides panel of human plasma samples to evaluate serological tests for detecting Zika infection

As an additional measure in the fight against Zika virus, today the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced that it has made available a panel of human plasma samples to aid in the regulatory evaluation of serological tests to detect recent Zika virus infection.

18 Aug 2017

Researchers investigate how previous exposure to West Nile virus affects Zika infection

West Nile virus is no stranger to the U.S.-Mexico border; thousands of people in the region have contracted the mosquito-borne virus in the past. But could this previous exposure affect how intensely Zika sickens someone now?

17 Aug 2017

Polio vaccine developed using tobacco plants could transform how vaccines are made

Scientists have used plants to create a new polio vaccine in what is hoped to be a breakthrough in the way vaccines are made.

16 Aug 2017

FDA issues Emergency Use Authorization for multiplex Zika test

The Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University's Mailman School today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued an Emergency Use Authorization for the CII-ArboViroPlex rRT-PCR Test, the first multiplex assay that simultaneously tests for the presence of Zika virus, all serotypes of dengue virus, chikungunya virus, and West Nile virus, as well as a host gene that ensures the accuracy of results.

14 Aug 2017

Researchers develop rapid test for Zika virus diagnosis

Washington University in St. Louis researchers have developed a test that quickly detects the presence of Zika virus in blood.

10 Aug 2017

Innovative handheld genetic sequencing device helps scientists track evolution of Zika virus

An international group of researchers on board a mobile laboratory equipped with an innovative handheld genetic sequencing device are tracking the movement of the Zika virus since it disembarked in Brazil and began spreading through the Americas.

From Oxford Nanopore Technologies 10 Aug 2017

ASU Biodesign researchers develop more potent, safer plant-based Zika vaccine

The worldwide Zika threat first emerged in 2015, infecting millions as it swept across the Americas. It struck great fear in pregnant women, as babies born with severe brain birth defects quickly overburdened hospitals and public health care systems.

9 Aug 2017

Prior flavivirus disease does not worsen Zika infection in rhesus macaques

Rhesus macaques previously infected with dengue or yellow fever viruses appear to be neither more nor less susceptible to severe infection with Zika virus, according to new research published in PLOS Pathogens.

4 Aug 2017

Mouse model developed to allow study of Zika virus transmission

Scientists at the National Institutes of Health have developed a mouse model to study the sexual and fetal transmission of Zika virus. This will enable studies to further understanding of how the Zika virus spreads, thereby allowing treatments to be developed.

4 Aug 2017

Georgia State receives high research funding to set record for sixth consecutive year

Georgia State University received $147 million in research funding in fiscal year 2017, setting a record for the sixth consecutive year.

4 Aug 2017

Sexual transmission of Zika virus reported in Florida

Yesterday, Florida Department of Health reported the first case of sexually transmitted Zika virus this year.

2 Aug 2017

Study shows how climate change affects Europe's most dangerous pathogens

The impact of climate change on the emergence and spread of infectious diseases could be greater than previously thought, according to new research by the University of Liverpool.

2 Aug 2017

Kidenga app tracks mosquito activity and disease symptoms for summer travelers

Just because Zika isn't in the news as much lately, doesn't mean the mosquito-borne infection no longer is a health threat.

26 Jul 2017

Scientists build DNA from scratch using yeast

Researchers are rewriting the yeast genome from scratch as part of a controversial project aiming to create custom-made chunks of DNA codes. One goal of the project is to create codes that can be inserted into cells to alter their function or even improve drug development.

26 Jul 2017

New antibody-based assay differentiates Zika from similar viral infections

A new test is the best-to-date in differentiating Zika virus infections from infections caused by similar viruses.

18 Jul 2017

Scientists find simple way to raise accuracy of diagnostic tests and common assays

Scientists at the University of Washington have discovered a simple way to raise the accuracy of diagnostic tests for medicine and common assays for laboratory research.

18 Jul 2017

20 million engineered and bacteria charged mosquitoes to be released in California

Alphabet Inc.’s Verily Life Sciences unit has come up with a plan to release around 20 million bacteria-filled engineered mosquitoes in Fresno, California. These are male mosquitoes that have been reared by machines and the campaign begins this Friday.

17 Jul 2017

Prior dengue fever in people infected by Zika does not lead to worse illness

Individuals who are infected by Zika virus after having dengue fever do not appear to become more severely ill than people with Zika who have never had dengue.

14 Jul 2017

Zika virus affecting teenage mothers in Brazil

Zika virus transmitted by mosquitoes is affecting scores of teenage girls in the latest Brazilian Zika outbreak. The consequences of this could be serious say experts

14 Jul 2017