By UM News — CORAL GABLES, Fla.– With Zika spreading rapidly across the Americas for over a year, there is still much to be learned about this insect-borne disease and its effects on humans. But scientists and researchers do have some knowledge about the virus and its public health implications. Zika symptoms include fever, rash, joint pain, conjunctivitis (red eyes) …

By UM News — CORAL GABLES, Fla.—Zika often goes undiagnosed because its symptoms are so similar to many other diseases, including dengue and chikungunya. Zika was first discovered in 1947 in a rhesus monkey in the Zika forest of Uganda, which gave the virus its name. The virus was recovered from the Aedes africanus mosquito in the Zika forest in …

By Special to UM News — A collaborative study led by a University of Miami Miller School of Medicine researcher has found that a “cocktail” of monoclonal antibodies prevented Zika virus (ZIKV) infection in primates. “This is a promising intervention to prevent and treat ZIKV infection during pregnancy,” said David Watkins, professor and vice chair for research, Department of Pathology. “We …

By UM News — Mario Stevenson, Ph.D., is chief of the division of infectious diseases and co-director of CFAR, and professor of medicine at the Miller School of Medicine. Stevenson’s research is aimed at uncovering the functions of viral accessory genes, mechanisms of viral persistence and immunopathogenicity as well as cellular factors influencing virus-host cell interplay. He worked with colleagues to …

By UM News — Christine L. Curry, M.D., Ph.D. is co-director of the Zika Response Team, housed in the Department of Pediatrics, and assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology. Curry’s research interests include global health, health disparities, comprehensive reproductive health and medical education. In this video, she looks back on the past year of helping to treat women and mothers with …

By UM News — Ivan A. Gonzalez, M.D., co-director of the Zika Response Team, housed in the Department of Pediatrics, and assistant professor of clinical pediatrics, discusses the role and importance of caring for babies and their mothers through potential and active Zika infection. Gonzalez specializes in pediatrics and pediatric infectious diseases and his research interests include patients with recurrent soft tissue …

By UM News — Sylvia Daunert, Ph.D., is an associate director of the Dr. John T. Macdonald Foundation Biomedical Nanotechnology Institute, director of research for the Center for Integrative and Complementary Medicine, the Lucille P. Markey chair of biochemistry and molecular biology, and professor of biochemistry and molecular biology. Daunert’s research interests include bionanotechnology, biosensing and molecular diagnostics. Here she discusses …

By UM News — John C. Beier, Sc.D., is director of the division of environment and public health and professor in the department of public health sciences at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, and professor in the Leonard and Jayne Abess Center for Ecosystem Science and Policy. Beier’s expertise and research interests lie in vector-borne diseases, vector biology …

By UM News — Paola N. Lichtenberger, M.D., is an assistant professor of clinical medicine and director of the tropical disease program. Lichtenberger’s research focuses on infectious and tropical diseases. She has been working with David Watkins, Ronald Desrosiers, and investigators at the University of São Paulo, Brazil, and the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, taking a preventative approach …

By Richard Westlund / Special to UM News — Christine L. Curry, M.D., Ph.D., assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology for the University of Miami Health System, was thrust into the national spotlight in 2016 for her leadership in caring for pregnant women infected with Zika. Today, Curry is still on the frontlines of caring for newly infected pregnant women …