Zika

The new model predicts a potential seasonal transmission risk for Zika virus during the summer. 

In a new study, Vanderbilt pharmacologist Jerod Denton, Ph.D., Ohio State entomologist Peter Piermarini, Ph.D., and colleagues report an experimental molecule that inhibits kidney function in mosquitoes and thus might provide a new way to control the deadliest animal on Earth.

A team of researchers have discovered the mechanism by which C10, a human antibody previously identified to react with the Dengue virus, prevents Zika infection.

 The virus could be transmitted via the environment if an individual is pricked with an infected needle or has an open cut and comes in contact with the live virus. 

The antibody was able to "inhibit infection by strains from both Africa and America in cell culture and in animals, including during pregnancy."

Three weeks after Zika infection, male mice had shrunken testicles and low levels of sex hormones. The results suggest that Zika infection may interfere with men’s ability to have children.

When challenged with Zika virus within a week of birth, two different vaccines protected mouse pups against neurological damage.