Zika virus tagged posts

Image: The spread of herpes simplex virus infection (green, left) is suppressed in cells treated with EZH2/1 inhibitors (GSK126 or GSK343). Credit: NIAID

After herpesviruses infect a cell, their genomes are assembled into specialized protein structures called nucelosomes. Many cellular enzyme complexes can modulate these structures to either promote or inhibit the progression of infection. Scientists studying how one of these complexes (EZH2/1) regulated herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection unexpectedly found that inhibiting EZH2/1 suppressed viral infection...

The Cas13a enzyme causes collateral RNA damage that is the heart of a new diagnostic system, SHERLOCK, that can detect minute quantities of virus and much more

Researchers have created a version of CRISPR-Cas that can be used to diagnose infections, such as Zika and dengue, with a high level of sensitivity. The advancement could help facilitate rapid detection and diagnosis of many other pathogens, too. While some methods exist for detecting genetic sequences, they have trade-offs among sensitivity, specificity, simplicity, cost, and speed. In the search for a more effective method, Feng Zhang, Jonathan S. Gootenberg and colleagues turned to a CRISPR-Cas system that targets RNA.

Binding the target RNA activates this particular Cas enzyme to promiscuously cleave nearby RNA...

Highlights
•Mexican ZIKV strain infects primary human fetal brain-derived neural stem cells
•ZIKV inhibits neuronal differentiation in a cell-strain-dependent manner
•Majority of differentiated ZIKV-infected cells are glial cells
•ZIKV-mediated transcriptome alteration is cell-strain-dependent

A multidisciplinary team from The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston has uncovered the mechanisms that the Zika virus uses to alter brain development. These findings are detailed in Stem Cell Reports. There are currently 70 countries and territories reporting active Zika transmission, according to the World Health Organization...

Surface reconstruction postnatal CT image obtained one week after delivery at 38 weeks of gestational age in the case of a 24-year-old woman pregnant with twins, with characteristic rash at nine weeks of pregnancy and confirmed Zika virus infection. Credit: Radiological Society of North America

Researchers from the epicenter of the current Zika virus outbreak have released a report on imaging findings in babies and fetuses infected with the Zika virus. In addition to microcephaly, the report identifies a wide array of brain defects, visible on CT, MRI and ultrasound. Zika appears to be most dangerous when transmitted from a pregnant mother to her fetus during the first trimester of pregnancy. Zika has also been linked to eye defects, hearing impairment and stunted growth in babies.

Though ...