Vaginal transmission causes prolonged Zika virus shedding in the vaginal mucosa and delays systemic dissemination

Abstract

Zika virus (ZIKV) has emerged as a significant health threat worldwide. Although typically mosquito-borne, recent evidence suggests that ZIKV is also a sexually transmitted virus. While persistent ZIKV infections in male reproductive tissues have been identified, little is understood regarding the outcomes of primary sexual transmission in females. We investigated how the route of infection affects vaginal ZIKV shedding and dissemination. In two mouse models, vaginal infection resulted in prolonged ZIKV shedding in the vaginal mucosa with delayed systemic infection. Furthermore, heightened vaginal inflammation did not influence ZIKV replication or dissemination, in contrast to previous studies of mosquito-borne infection. Thus, vaginal infection significantly alters ZIKV infection kinetics and must be considered when developing novel treatments.

Immunology & Cell Biology's Top 10 original research articles 2021–2022

“…investigating whether the route of transmission of the Zika virus alters the infection kinetics. The authors used multiple transmission models and found that vaginal transmission resulted in longer shedding while delaying systemic infection 7 . Moreover, their work revealed that defective type 1 interferon (IFN) signaling was required for viral susceptibility 7 .…”

“…7 Moreover, their work revealed that defective type 1 interferon (IFN) signaling was required for viral susceptibility. 7 Abers et al 1 also studied type 1 IFN in viral infection by determining whether neutralizing anti-type 1 IFN autoantibodies in patients with severe COVID were associated with worse outcomes. Although the presence of neutralizing anti-type 1 IFN antibodies did not correlate with poorer survival, there was an with admission to ICU, longer time for viral clearance and increased likelihood of bacterial infections.…”

“…• Curson et al 5 An alternative downstream translation start site in the non-TIR adaptor Scimp enables selective amplification of CpG DNA responses in mouse macrophages. 7 Vaginal transmission causes prolonged Zika virus shedding in the vaginal mucosa and delays systemic dissemination.…”

“…Looking at the list of articles, the current international focus on viral diseases is evident with five of the ten studies investigating coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), influenza, lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) and Zika and by groups in France, Italy, the United States, Australia and Canada. The first of these is an article by Balint et al 7 investigating whether the route of transmission of the Zika virus alters the infection kinetics. The authors used multiple transmission models and found that vaginal transmission resulted in longer shedding while delaying systemic infection.…”

“…The authors used multiple transmission models and found that vaginal transmission resulted in longer shedding while delaying systemic infection. 7 Moreover, their work revealed that defective type 1 interferon (IFN) signaling was required for viral susceptibility. 7 Abers et al 1 also studied type 1 IFN in viral infection by determining whether neutralizing anti-type 1 IFN autoantibodies in patients with severe COVID were associated with worse outcomes.…”