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Objective: The purpose of this study is to provide the first evidence of Zika virus circulation (ZIK) in Sudan. Zika virus was first isolated in the Zika forest of Uganda in 1947, and in 2016, the World Health Assembly declared it a public health emergency of international concern. The discovery of Zika virus circulation in Sudan came as a secondary finding in a 2012 country-wide yellow fever prevalence study, when laboratory tests were done to exclude cross-reactions between flaviviruses. The study was cross-sectional community-based, with randomly selected participants through multi-stage cluster sampling. A sub-set of samples were tested for the Zika virus using ELISA, and the ones that demonstrated reactive results were subsequently tested by PRNT., Results: The prevalence of Zika IgG antibodies among ELISA-tested samples was 62.7% (59.4 to 66.1, 95% CI), and only one sample was found positive when tested by PRNT. This provided the first documented evidence for the pre-existing circulation of Zika virus circulation in Sudan. This evidence provides the foundation for future research in this field, and further structured studies should be conducted to determine the epidemiology and burden of the disease.

Purpose: Zika virus infections have recently been reported in many dengue-endemic areas globally. Both dengue (DENV) and Zika (ZIKV) virus are transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes, raising the possibility of mixed infections in both vector and host. We evaluated DENV and ZIKV prevalence in human and vector samples in Kolkata, a DENV-endemic city., Methodology: Blood samples were collected from 70 patients presenting dengue-like fever symptoms at a hospital in Kolkata during 2015-16. Serum was obtained and tested for DENV infection by DENV NS1-based ELISA. Adult (n=8) and larval stages (n=12) of Aedes were also collected. A RT-PCR-based screening of both viruses supplemented by amplicon sequencing was performed., Results: Of the 70 samples, 20 DENV NS1-positive serum samples were used for detailed molecular study for DENV infection. Eighteen of these (90 %) were positive by hemi-nested serotype-specific RT-PCR for DENV1/2/3, with four samples showing evidence of DENV2-3 or DENV1-3 mixed infection. None were ZIKV-positive using NS5 or ENV-based PCR, though weak amplification of a DENV1 NS5 sequence was detected in three serum samples indicating cross-reactivity of the primers. All mosquito samples were ZIKV-negative, whereas 5/8 (63 %) of adult mosquitoes and 11/12 (92 %) of larvae were DENV3-positive., Conclusion: Both host and vector samples showed absence of ZIKV but high prevalence of DENV. The high rate of infection of larvae with DENV is suggestive of trans-ovarial transmission that could contribute to the surge of human infections during each post-monsoon season. It would be important to guard against false positives using the available Zika-reporting primer sets.

Zika virus (ZIKV) is an arbovirus transmitted mainly by mosquitos of Aedes species. The virus has emerged in recent years and spread throughout North and South Americas. The recent outbreak of ZIKV started in Brazil (2015) has resulted in infections surpassing a million mark. Contrary to the previous beliefs that Zika causes mildly symptomatic infections fever, headache, rash, arthralgia, and conjunctivitis, the recent outbreak associated ZIKV to serious neurological complications such as microcephaly, Guillain-Barré syndrome, and eye infections. The recent outbreak has resulted in an astonishing number of microcephaly cases in fetus and infants. Consequently, numerous studies were conducted using in vitro cell and in vivo animal models. These studies showed clear links between ZIKV infections and neurological abnormalities. Diagnosis methods based on nucleic acid and serological detection facilitated rapid and accurate identification of ZIKV infections. New transmission modalities such as sexual and transplacental transmission were uncovered. Given the seriousness of ZIKV infections, WHO declared the development of safe and effective vaccines and new antiviral drugs as an urgent global health priority. Rapid work in this direction has led to the identification of several vaccine and antiviral drug candidates. Here, we review the remarkable progress made in understanding the molecular links between ZIKV infections and neurological irregularities, new diagnosis methods, potential targets for antiviral drugs, and the current state of vaccine development.

The currently spreading arbovirus epidemic is having a severe impact on human health worldwide. The two most common flaviviruses, dengue virus (DENV) and Zika virus (ZIKV), are transmitted through the same viral vector, Aedes spp. mosquitoes. Since the discovery of DENV in 1943, this virus has been reported to cause around 390 million human infections per year, approximately 500,000 of which require hospitalization and over 20,000 of which are lethal. The present DENV epidemic is primarily concentrated in Southeast Asia. ZIKV, which was discovered in 1952, is another important arthropod-borne flavivirus. The neurotropic role of ZIKV has been reported in infected newborns with microcephaly and in adults with Guillain-Barre syndrome. Despite DENV and ZIKV sharing the same viral vector, their complex pathogenic natures are poorly understood, and the infections they cause do not have specific treatments or effective vaccines. Therefore, this review will describe what is currently known about the clinical characteristics, pathogenesis mechanisms, and transmission of these two viruses. Better understanding of the interrelationships between DENV and ZIKV will provide a useful perspective for developing an effective strategy for controlling both viruses in the future.

Abstract Zika virus (ZIKV) is a newly emergent relative of the Flaviviridae family and linked to dengue (DENV) and Chikungunya (CHIVKV). ZIKV is one of the rising pathogens promptly surpassing geographical borders. ZIKV infection was characterized by mild disease with fever, headache, rash, arthralgia and conjunctivitis, with exceptional reports of an association with Guillain–Barre syndrome (GBS) and microcephaly. However, since the end of 2015, an increase in the number of GBS associated cases and an astonishing number of microcephaly in fetus and new-borns in Brazil have been related to ZIKV infection, raising serious worldwide public health concerns. ZIKV is transmitted by the bite of infected female mosquitoes of Aedes species. Clarifying such worrisome relationships is, thus, a current unavoidable goal. Here, we extensively described the current understanding of the effects of ZIKV on heath, clinical manifestation, diagnosis and treatment options based on modern, alternative and complementary medicines regarding the disease.

The Zika virus (ZIKV) is a flavivirus of the family Flaviviridae, which is similar to dengue virus, yellow fever and West Nile virus. Recent outbreaks in South America, Latin America, the Caribbean and in particular Brazil have led to concern for the spread of the disease and potential to cause Guillain-Barré syndrome and microcephaly. Although ZIKV has been known of for over 60 years there is very little in the way of knowledge of the virus with few publications and no crystal structures. No antivirals have been tested against it either in vitro or in vivo. ZIKV therefore epitomizes a neglected disease. Several suggested steps have been proposed which could be taken to initiate ZIKV antiviral drug discovery using both high throughput screens as well as structure-based design based on homology models for the key proteins. We now describe preliminary homology models created for NS5, FtsJ, NS4B, NS4A, HELICc, DEXDc, peptidase S7, NS2B, NS2A, NS1, E stem, glycoprotein M, propeptide, capsid and glycoprotein E using SWISS-MODEL. Eleven out of 15 models pass our model quality criteria for their further use. While a ZIKV glycoprotein E homology model was initially described in the immature conformation as a trimer, we now describe the mature dimer conformer which allowed the construction of an illustration of the complete virion. By comparing illustrations of ZIKV based on this new homology model and the dengue virus crystal structure we propose potential differences that could be exploited for antiviral and vaccine design. The prediction of sites for glycosylation on this protein may also be useful in this regard. While we await a cryo-EM structure of ZIKV and eventual crystal structures of the individual proteins, these homology models provide the community with a starting point for structure-based design of drugs and vaccines as well as a for computational virtual screening.

The Zika virus (ZIKV) is a flavivirus of the family Flaviviridae, which is similar to dengue virus, yellow fever and West Nile virus. Recent outbreaks in South America, Latin America, the Caribbean and in particular Brazil have led to concern for the spread of the disease and potential to cause Guillain-Barré syndrome and microcephaly. Although ZIKV has been known of for over 60 years there is very little in the way of knowledge of the virus with few publications and no crystal structures. No antivirals have been tested against it either in vitro or in vivo. ZIKV therefore epitomizes a neglected disease. Several suggested steps have been proposed which could be taken to initiate ZIKV antiviral drug discovery using both high throughput screens as well as structure-based design based on homology models for the key proteins. We now describe preliminary homology models created for NS5, FtsJ, NS4B, NS4A, HELICc, DEXDc, peptidase S7, NS2B, NS2A, NS1, E stem, glycoprotein M, propeptide, capsid and glycoprotein E using SWISS-MODEL. Eleven out of 15 models pass our criteria for selection. While a ZIKV glycoprotein E homology model was initially described in the immature conformation as a trimer, we now describe the mature dimer conformer which allowed the construction of an illustration of the complete virion. By comparing illustrations of ZIKV based on this new homology model and the dengue virus crystal structure we propose potential differences that could be exploited for antiviral and vaccine design. The prediction of sites for glycosylation on this protein may also be useful in this regard. While we await a cryo-EM structure of ZIKV and eventual crystal structures of the individual proteins, these homology models provide the community with a starting point for structure-based design of drugs and vaccines as well as a for computational virtual screening.

First Chikungunya outbreak occurred in Karachi, Pakistan in 2016. Chikungunya is transmitted by the Aedes mosquito which is also transmits Dengue fever. The first Dengue fever outbreak of Pakistan also occurred in Karachi in 1994. In the past 23 years the disease has spread to all parts of the country. This is comprehensible as there is a lot of travelling between Karachi and other parts of the country which increases the chances of spread of the virus. Based on the precedent of Dengue fever in Pakistan, if appropriate preventive measures are not taken to control Chikungunya, it will only be a matter of time before it hits other parts of the country. At the same time International Health Regulations has to be practiced with all its zest to avoid introduction of diseases like Zika virus and yellow fever, which are also transmitted by Aedes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Zika virus is mainly transmitted to human through bite of an infected Aedes species mosquito. It was reported that the transmission also occurs by blood transfusion, sexual intercourse and from mother to foetus. The World Health Organization (WHO) had declared Zika infection outbreak as Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) in February 2016. Since December 2016, total of eight Zika cases had been reported to Ministry of Health, Malaysia (MOH). Since there is no available vaccine and specific treatment for the Zika virus infection, the preventive practices against Zika virus infection is the only defense and method to curb the infection. The objective of this study is to determine predictors of preventive practices towards Zika virus infection among patients attending health clinics in Seremban. Methods: A cross-sectional study was done in selected public health clinics in Seremban, involving 874 respondents recruited by simple random sampling method. Primary data was collected using self-administered questionnaires in English and Bahasa Malaysia. Descriptive and analytical statistics were performed using SPSS version 22.0. Results: Majority of the respondents were female (57.2%), below 40 years old (62.5%), Malay (83.1%), Muslim (83.8%), married (86.2%) and had secondary school education (51.8%), working (64.9%) with monthly household income of