Zika: the origin and spread of a mosquito-borne virus

Abstract

ObjectiveTo describe the temporal and geographical distribution of Zika virus infection and associated neurological disorders, from 1947 to 1 February 2016, when Zika became a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).MethodsWe did a literature search using the terms “Zika” and “ZIKV” in PubMed, cross-checked the findings for completeness against other published reviews and added formal notifications to WHO submitted under the International Health Regulations.FindingsFrom the discovery of Zika virus in Uganda in 1947 to the declaration of a PHEIC by the World Health Organization (WHO) on 1 February 2016, a total of 74 countries and territories had reported human Zika virus infections. The timeline in this paper charts the discovery of the virus (1947), its isolation from mosquitos (1948), the first human infection (1952), the initial spread of infection from Asia to a Pacific island (2007), the first known instance of sexual transmission (2008), reports of Guillain-Barré syndrome (2014) and microcephaly (2015) linked to Zika infections and the first appearance of Zika in the Americas (from 2015).ConclusionZika virus infection in humans appears to have changed in character as its geographical range has expanded from equatorial Africa and Asia. The change is from an endemic, mosquito-borne infection causing mild illness to one that can cause large outbreaks linked with neurological sequelae and congenital abnormalities.

Phylogenetic analysis revealed the central roles of two African countries in the evolution and worldwide spread of Zika virus

“…Viruses of the Asian/American lineage were circulating mainly in American and Asian countries as well as the Pacific Islands, while viruses of African lineages 1 and 2 were circulating in African countries. The prevalence of ZIKV lineages over time was also characterized based on 1968, 1976, 1979, 1980Saluzzo et al, 1981Berthet et al, 2014 Cote d'Ivoire* CI 1980-1996, 1999Faye et al, 2014Egypt EG 1954Smithburn et al, 1954Gabon* GA 1975Jan et al, 1978Grard et al, 2014Nigeria* NG 1953, 1964-1970Macnamara, 1954Moore et al, 1975;Kindhauser et al, 2016Senegal* SN 1960s-1970s, 1990s-2000s Faye et al, 2014Kindhauser et al, 2016Tanzania TZ 1952Smithburn, 1952 Uganda* UG 1947, 1952, 1963Dick et al, 1952Smithburn, 1952;Faye et 2007 (Lanciotti et al, 2008). Then the African lineage 2 strains from Senegal were identified from 1998 to 2001 ( Figure 3C, lavender pattern).…”

“…It was isolated from Ae-des aegypti in Malaysia in 1966 (Marchette et al, 1969). The wide distribution of ZIKV in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Pakistan was further revealed by serological investigations (Kindhauser et al, 2016). Subsequently, ZIKV spread to countries in Oceania and the Americas.…”

“…ZIKV was then identified from Suriname (Enfissi et al, 2016b) in South America, and on other Pacific Islands including French Polynesia (Berthet et al, 2014;Cao-Lormeau et al, 2014;Hancock et al, 2014), Easter Island of Chile (Tognarelli et al, 2015), the Cook Islands (Roth et al, 2014), and New Caledonia (Roth et al, 2014;Dupont-Rouzeyrol et al, 2015). Imported cases were also identified in countries of the Americas and Europe (Foy et al, 2011;Waehre et al, 2014;Zammarchi et al, 2015;Kindhauser et al, 2016). Until March 2016, a total of 10 imported infectious cases had been diagnosed in China.…”

Zika virus and Guillain–Barré syndrome in Bangladesh

“…Recently, the association between ZIKV and GBS has also been reported in various Latin‐American countries following outbreaks of ZIKV 4, 7, 8, 9. In Asia, where ZIKV has been endemic for several decades,10, 11, 12 the occurrence of GBS and other neurological complications after ZIKV infection have thus far not been reported. The frequency of ZIKV infections in endemic areas is lower than during outbreaks, but considering the size and continuity of the exposed population, a considerable number of people in Asia are expected to be at risk to develop GBS.…”

Molecular mapping of Zika spread

“…The former yields the carbohydrate ribose, and the latter the amino acids serine and glycine, which are all important substrates for nucleotide synthesis. The two pathways also generate the cofactor molecule NADPH and the antioxidant peptide glutathione, both of which can neutralize reactive oxygen species (ROS) 7 .…”