From News Medical Life Sciences
July 28, 2019
Tel Aviv scientists have discovered certain genes that protect the host organism against attack by Zika virus, raising hopes of an eventual vaccine or cure for this dreaded viral disease.
The Zika virus, which is rampant in South America, can cause severe damage especially to unborn babies, including fetal death or stillbirth, or serious birth defects which are collectively called the congenital Zika syndrome. This includes such issues as a significant and crippling reduction in head size (microcephaly), neurological anomalies, and retarded development. Over 60 million people have been affected so far by this insect-borne virus, which can also cause the paralyzing disease Guillain-Barre syndrome and other nerve illnesses. However, scientists have not come up with a vaccine or cure for this devastating disease.