InFocus interview with Dra Carmen Soria

Zika plasma viral dynamics in nonhuman primates provides insights into early infection and antiviral strategies

Researchers found that in order for an antiviral treatment to effectively reduce the time to plasma viral clearance therapy should be initiated at the time of infection or given prophylactically.

REDe holds first workshops in Brazil

Phenotypic Differences between Asian and African Lineage Zika Viruses in Human Neural Progenitor Cells

Taken together, this study shows that African and Asian ZIKV strains differ in their abilities to infect and replicate in different neural cells, as well as their abilities to cause cell death early after infection. This implies that caution is necessary against extrapolation of experimental data obtained using historical African ZIKV strains to the current outbreak. In addition, the fact that Asian ZIKV strains infect only a minority of cells with a relatively low burst size together with the lack of early cell death induction might contribute to their ability to cause chronic infections within the CNS.

Insecticide resistance is mediated by multiple mechanisms in recently introduced Aedes aegypti from Madeira Island (Portugal)

This study showed the up-regulation of several detoxification genes of multiple enzyme families associated with metabolic resistance, and the presence of the two kdr mutations, with the F1534C being fixed. Another suggested mechanism probably involved in the resistance phenotype is cuticle thickening, as several cuticle genes were found overexpressed. This study reinforces the importance of alternative control strategies to suppress Ae. aegypti population and thus reduce the likelihood of arbovirus transmission in the region.

Quality Assurance Plan for Clinical Research Studies: A Template and Guide

All research studies on human subjects should have a level of quality and ethical standard assurance built into their operations to ensure that that the rights and well-being of human subjects are protected and that the data are reliable. This combined template and guide assists research teams in developing a QA plan for their study.

The REDe Guide to Clinical Research Practical Data Quality Monitoring

This guide will set out why quality management and monitoring is important and how it can be easily and practically built into a study. 

Emerging arboviruses: Why today?

In this study, the authors select examples of (re)emerging pathogenic arboviruses and explain the reasons for their emergence and different patterns of dispersal, focusing particularly on the mosquito vectors which are important determinants of arbovirus emergence. They also attempt to identify arboviruses likely to (re)emerge in the future.

Establishment and cryptic transmission of Zika virus in Brazil and the Americas

Results from this study further indicate that viruses from northeast Brazil were important for the continental spread of ZIKV. Within Brazil, the authors find instances of virus lineage movement from northeast to southeast Brazil; most of these events are dated to the second half of 2014 and led to onwards transmission in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo states. The authors infer that ZIKV lineages disseminated from northeast Brazil to elsewhere in Central America, the Caribbean, and South America.

Culex quinquefasciatus from areas with the highest incidence of microcephaly associated with Zika virus infections in the Northeast Region of Brazil are refractory to the virus

The study shows that Culex quinquefasciatus should not be considered a potential vector of ZIKV in Brazil.

How to set up an In-House Monitoring Scheme

A coherent four step plan for implementing in-house or reciprocal monitoring systems at a research site

Reciprocal Monitoring: A proven and practical approach to quality management within research networks and centres

There has been a trend over recent years towards the use of expensive contract organisations to monitor research studies and this can be expensive and is not necessary. This overview explains the reasons for reciprocal monitoring, and how it can benefit research groups.

The REDe Guide to Clinical Research Practical Quality Monitoring

One of the goals of the REDe network is to support the conduct of high quality research by providing tools, training and guidance in all the elements that are required. A very fundamental, but often overlooked, piece in this is the planning and implementation of research quality management (which is often referred to as monitoring).

Imipramine Inhibits Chikungunya Virus Replication in Human Skin Fibroblasts through Interference with Intracellular Cholesterol Trafficking

This study shows that imipramine strongly inhibits the replication of several Flaviviridae family members, including Zika, West Nile and Dengue virus. These data show that this compound is a potential drug candidate for anti-arboviral treatment.

Low seroprevalence of Zika virus in Cameroonian blood donors

The findings from this study indicate that the immunity of the Cameroonian population against ZIKV is low and that circulation in urban populations is uncommon. Hence, the risk of epidemic spread of ZIKV does exist. The virus is likely to be imported by infected travelers coming from epidemic areas and has the potential to be transmitted by local peri-domestic mosquitoes. This study provides biological evidence that such introduction would occur in populations that are globally immunologically naïve against ZIKV infection and live in areas where potential epidemic vectors exist.

Suramin inhibits Zika virus replication by interfering with virus attachment and release of infectious particles

The authors of this article describe inhibition of ZIKV replication by suramin, originally an anti-parasitic drug. They suggest that the inhibitory effect of suramin on ZIKV attachment and virion biogenesis and its broadspectrum activity warrant further evaluation of this compound as a potential therapeutic.

Successful technology transfer of a Zika vaccine developed by Institut Pasteur Shanghai-Chinese Academy of Sciences (IPS-CAS) to Chongqing Zhifei Biological Products Co., Ltd.

Institut Pasteur Shanghai-Chinese Academy of Sciences (IPS-CAS), a partner of the ZIKAlliance consortium, announced that it has entered into a collaborative research agreement with Chongqing Zhifei Biological Products Stock Co., Ltd. (Zhifei) for the clinical studies and commercialization of a recombinant Zika virus subunit vaccine developed by IPS-CAS.

Call for support - Global Vector Control Response grant application

In response to the recent World Health Organisation (WHO) Global Vector Control Response document (http://www.who.int/malaria/global-vector-control-response/en/), ARCTEC at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine is working with The Global Health Network, the WHO and the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to develop an exciting new initiative called The Global Vector Hub. The project is being part-funded by an EU H2020 grant as part of the recently formed ZikaPLAN consortium.  We have been invited by the Wellcome Trust to submit an application for a Biomedical Resource and Technology Development Grant to help fund the website. We have successfully advanced through the first round of grant proposals. The full application is now being prepared and is due for submission on 3rd April, 2017. To demonstrate the need for the Global Vector Hub, we are collecting letters of support from potential stakeholders. It would be great if you could distribute this e-mail to your contacts and ask them to provide letters of support.

Risk of microcephaly after Zika virus infection in Brazil, 2015 to 2016

The key message from this study is that the large uncertainty around the risk estimate needs to be further investigated because of a) the possible existence of co-factors that are yet to be validated, b) the assumptions that the authors needed to make in the absence of good data for the proportion of women who were infected during pregnancy.

Risk of microcephaly after Zika virus infection in Brazil, 2015 to 2016

The key message from this study is that the large uncertainty around the risk estimate needs to be further investigated because of a) the possible existence of co-factors that are yet to be validated, b) the assumptions that the authors needed to make in the absence of good data for the proportion of women who were infected during pregnancy.