New antibodies could diagnose and treat Zika virus

From the Medical News Bulletin
January 9, 2019

Researchers from the United States utilized ribosome display technology to generate six antibodies that could diagnose and treat Zika virus.

Zika virus disease, also known as Zika fever or Zika virus infection, is primarily caused by a bite of an infected mosquito from the Aedes genus. The disease can also be transmitted through different forms of transmission such as blood transfusion, sexual contact, and organ transplantation. The infection often causes no or only mild symptoms of fever, rash, conjunctivitis, muscle and joint pain, and headache, similar to a very mild form of dengue fever.

Zika in early pregnancy has found significantly increase the risk of birth defects. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 10 % of babies of women with confirmed infection during pregnancy in US states and about 5% in US territories had Zika-associated birth defects. This can cause serious pregnancy complications such as fetal loss, stillbirth, and preterm birth.

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