
Viraj Shah and Pradeep Kumar Singh
Review on Zika Virus Infection: An Overview
Int.J.Adv.Microbiol.Health.Res.2018; 2(3):11-21
Publisher: IJAMHR, Category: Current Issues
Abstract
Globally, one of the recent causes of public health concern is the one caused by the
arthropod-borne flavivirus transmitted by mosquitoes, called Zika virus. In all over the
world, approximately, 1.5 million people have infected with this ZIKV disease. This disease
is isolated in 1947 from the serum of Rhesus macaques in the forests of Africa, the virus has
been quickly emerging on the landscapes of western hemisphere over the past few years
(Africa, Asia and Oceania), as a health threat to the masses. From 1969 to 1983 the
geographical distribution of Zika virus expanded to equatorial Asia – including Pakistan,
Malaysia, India and Indonesia. The Zika virus is phylogenetically related to other medically
important mosquito-borne flaviviruses of global public health significance, such as Japanese
encephalitis, West Nile, dengue, and yellow fever viruses .The Zika virus infection causes
Zika fever that is responsible for several neurological complications like Guillain-Barre
Syndrome and congenital malformations like microcephaly in infants born to infected
mothers. The primary mode of transmission of ZIKV between humans is through the bite of
an infected female mosquito of the Aedes species, which are widely spread in tropical areas.
Common diagnostic approaches used for the detection of the virus include molecular
amplification (RT-PCR) on serum samples and serological testing for detection of ZIKV
IgM antibodies. No Zika virus vaccine exists. There are no licensed antiviral drugs to
prevent or treat ZIKV infection or disease. In vitro and in vivo evaluation of therapeutic
efficacy of several different types of vaccines, drugs as wells as compounds with anti-ZIKV
activity is being carried out that offers hope for human protection against this catastrophic
epidemic. The other various alternatives are being evaluated for optimized surveillance,
patient management, and public health intervention in the current Zika virus epidemic.
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