The importance of B cells in the development of preventive and therapeutical approaches against Dengue, Zika and Chikungunya viral infections

Abstract

Among the deadliest animals on the planet, mosquitoes occupy the number 1 in the ranking. They are capable of transmitting several diseases caused by parasitic, bacterial or viral pathogens. The prevalence of mosquito borne-diseases is higher in tropical areas where high humidity and temperature as well as unplanned urbanization are found. In the context of viral diseases, a particular mosquito vector, Aedes aegypti, has been in the spotlight. It transmits Yellow Fever (YFV), Dengue (DENV), Zika (ZIKV) (all Flaviviruses) and Chikungunya (CHIKV) viruses (alphavirus) to humans. Recently, DENV, ZIKV and CHIKV infection outbreaks have been detected simultaneously in the same locations, such as French Polynesia or Brazil (Brazilian Ministry of Health, 2016 -http://portalsaude.saude.gov.br/images/pdf/2016/ maio/17/2016-016---Dengue-SE16-publica----o.pdf), raising global concerns. There is evidence that ZIKV transmission occurs through mosquito bite, blood or sexual contact (Foy et al., 2011;McCarthy, 2016). Generally, its symptoms are mild and similar to DENV and CHIKV infections. Nevertheless, some ZIKV-infected patients showed development of neurological alterations such as Guillain-Barré syndrome (Brasil et al., 2016), microcephaly, macula atrophy and others (Li et al., 2016;Mlakar et al., 2016;Ventura et al., 2016;Cugola et al., 2016;Garcez et al., 2016). Currently, Brazil is a major hotspot for DENV, ZIKV and CHIKV infections, which have been detected in almost all regions of the country (Cardoso et al., 2016). Unfortunately, Brazilians have struggled with government slow actions in response to those epidemics. Consequently, it delays their diagnostics and the start of a treatment, raising awareness that those viral infections may spread out quickly in the Americas and other parts of the world where Aedes mosquitoes reside.