Microcephaly News and Research

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Measuring head circumference (also known as occipito-frontal circumference) is a significant part of the proper evaluation of a child’s growth and development, as it represents a direct indication of head growth. Therefore deviations from normal head growth may reveal certain congenital or acquired problem.

Study suggests Zika virus poses wider threat in human pregnancies

Zika virus infection passes efficiently from a pregnant monkey to its fetus, spreading inflammatory damage throughout the tissues that support the fetus and the fetus's developing nervous system, and suggesting a wider threat in human pregnancies than generally appreciated.

25 May 2017

Genetic sequencing reveals how Zika virus spread in the Americas

Genetic analysis of samples collected as the Zika virus (ZIKV) spread throughout the Americas after its introduction in 2013 or 2014 has shown that the virus circulated undetected for up to a year in some regions before it came to the attention of public health authorities.

24 May 2017

Chikungunya, dengue, and Zika viruses: three viruses in one mosquito

The study published in Nature Communications on May 19 found that Aedes aegypti, the primary mosquito that carries the Zika virus, might also transmit chikungunya and dengue viruses with one bite.

22 May 2017

Study findings shed new light on coinfection with chikungunya, dengue or Zika viruses

A new study led by Colorado State University researchers found that Aedes aegypti, the primary mosquito that carries Zika virus, might also transmit chikungunya and dengue viruses with one bite.

19 May 2017

Brisbane researchers synthetically re-create Zika virus to better understand birth defects

Brisbane researchers have synthetically re-created Zika virus in the laboratory - a breakthrough which will help to understand the virus and the fetal brain defects it causes.

17 May 2017

New research could be first step toward drug to treat Zika infections

New research led by Alexey Terskikh, Ph.D., associate professor at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute (SBP), and Alex Strongin, Ph.D., professor at SBP, could be a first step toward a drug to treat Zika infections. Publishing in Antiviral Research, the scientific team discovered a compound that prevents the virus from spreading.

16 May 2017

Preclinical results of translational research show favorable outcomes in developing Zika virus vaccine

Preclinical results of research by City College of New York scientists and TechnoVax, Inc. in animal models demonstrate favorable outcomes in developing a vaccine against the mosquito-borne Zika virus.

11 May 2017

Computational analysis highlights potential economic burden of Zika outbreak in the U.S.

Even a relatively mild Zika outbreak in the United States could cost more than $183 million in medical costs and productivity losses, suggests a computational analysis led by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health researchers, while a more severe one could result in $1.2 billion or more in medical costs and productivity losses.

3 May 2017

Researchers find persistence of Zika virus in cerebrospinal fluid, lymph nodes of rhesus monkeys

Zika virus can persist in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), lymph nodes and colorectal tissue of infected rhesus monkeys for weeks after the virus has been cleared from blood, urine and mucosal secretions, according to a study published online in Cell.

28 Apr 2017

Zika-related birth defects reported by 1 in 10 US based pregnant women infected by the virus in 2016

The new Vital Signs report, released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has reported that of 250 pregnant women confirmed with Zika infection in 2016, approximately 1 in 10 of them had a fetus or infant with virus-related birth defects. Thisreport is the first of its kind, to present an analysis from a sample of US women with a definite case of Zika infection during pregnancy.

5 Apr 2017

Zika virus may pose increased risk to people previously infected with dengue and West Nile, study finds

As the Zika virus continues to spread rapidly across the globe, it might pose a particular risk to people previously infected with two related viruses, dengue and West Nile, researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have found.

5 Apr 2017

Study reveals high-resolution view of Zika viral life cycle within infected cells

New research reveals a high-resolution view of the Zika viral life cycle within infected cells and shows dramatic changes in the cell's architecture throughout the infection process. This novel perspective may lead to the development of new vaccines and treatments.

30 Mar 2017

Researchers map key Zika virus protein to accelerate search for cure

A study published today shows how Indiana University scientists are speeding the path to new treatments for the Zika virus, an infectious disease linked to birth defects in infants in South and Central America and the United States.

28 Mar 2017

Zika continues to plague babies in Rio’s sprawling urban slums even after Olympics

Many international travelers to the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, openly considered skipping the games to avoid the threat of Zika.

24 Mar 2017

Researchers describe set of observable characteristics linked to congenital Zika syndrome

Even as the Zika virus becomes more prevalent — the Centers for Disease Control reports that the number of U.S. infants born with microcephaly and other birth defects is 20 times over the normal rate — researchers are still trying to fully pin down the identifying consequences of the viral infection.

24 Mar 2017

Maternal infections during pregnancy may alter genes key to prenatal brain development

If a mother picks up an infection during pregnancy, her immune system will kick into action to clear the infection - but this self-defence mechanism may also have a small influence how her child's brain develops in the womb, in ways that are similar to how the brain develops in autism spectrum disorders.

21 Mar 2017

Sandia researchers develop smartphone-based device to rapidly detect mosquito-borne viruses

Add rapid, mobile testing for Zika and other viruses to the list of things that smartphone technology is making possible. Researchers at Sandia National Laboratories have developed a smartphone-controlled, battery-operated diagnostic device that weighs under a pound, costs as little as $100 and can detect Zika, dengue and chikungunya within 30 minutes.