The findings, published Friday in Cell Stem Cell, detailed exposure of cells that ultimately contribute to the formation of the brain. Researchers found that after infecting the cells, the virus replicated, killing them and derailing the production of new cells.
“This is the first step toward understanding how Zika can affect brain development,” Guo-li Ming, MD, PhD, study author and a professor of neurology at Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore, told the Wall Street Journal.
A separate study published Friday in the New England Journal of Medicine found that serious problems persist in the third trimester for women who had Zika at some point during pregnancy. Of 88 women tested for the virus, 72 percent had laboratory-confirmed Zika. Fetal abnormalities were detected in 12 of 42 Zika-positive women.
More articles on Zika virus:
How Google is working with UNICEF to fight Zika
HHS approves emergency use of Zika antibody diagnostic test
FDA makes recommendations to limit risk of Zika transmission through tissue donation
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