A Review- Recent Outbreak of Zika Viruses in India, its Vectorology and Virology

Abstract

Zika virus is an arbovirus (arthropod-borne virus) which belongs to the family Flaviviridae that was first isolated in 1947 from blood of a febrile rhesus macaque monkey during a yellow fever study in the Zika forest of Uganda and later identified in  Aedes africanus  mosquito from the same forest. But in 2007, the first major outbreak of Zika virus infection occurred in Yap Island (Federated States of Micronesia), where, it was noticed that an outbreak of illness characterized by rashes, conjunctivitis, subjective fever, arthralgia, and arthritis. Approximately 73% of the population were infected and out of which 18% developed symptomatic disease. In 2015, an estimated 1.5 million cases were reported in Brazil. In 2017, 305 cases were reported from US kingdom and in 2018, 109 cases from India (Rajasthan, Gujrat and Madhya Pradesh). The best method to diagnose the disease is by RT-PCR and till date there is no vaccine or specific treatment available. The most acceptable method for prevention is to reduce egg laying sites of the adult mosquito. Continued researches of vaccine development, treatment, medication and prevention strategies are in progress to eradicate the disease.