For Immediate Release
Researchers Show Zika-virus Infected Chick Embryos a Good Model for Studying Microcephaly in Human Pregnancy
Contact: Jennifer Gatti
914-740-2149
jgatti@liebertpub.com
New Rochelle, NY, November 2, 2016 –A new study has shown that chick embryos can be infected with Zika virus and have Zika-induced brain changes including the microcephaly seen in human fetuses infected early in pregnancy. Chick embryos can serve as a valuable model organism for studying the effects of Zika virus on development and for screening experimental therapies, according to the study published in Stem Cells and Development, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available free on the Stem Cells and Development website until November 30, 2016.
In “Zika Virus Induced Mortality and Microcephaly in Chicken Embryos,” Forrest T. Goodfellow and Steven Stice, Regenerative Bioscience Center, College of Agriculture and Environmental Science; Blanka Tesla, Thomas Hodge, and Melinda Brindley, College of Veterinary Medicine, and Gregory Simchick and Qun Zhao, Bioimaging Research Center and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Georgia, Athens, describe the study in which they directly infected chick embryos at various stages of development with Zika virus isolated from mosquitoes. The researchers monitored the effects of infection on various organs including the central nervous system.
“A novel in vivo model able to chronicle Zika virus-induced brain pathophysiology using advanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technologies in an efficient, affordable manner,” says Editor-in-Chief Graham C. Parker, PhD, The Carman and Ann Adams Department of Pediatrics, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI.
About the Journal
Stem Cells and Development is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published 24 times per year in print and online. The Journal is dedicated to communication and objective analysis of developments in the biology, characteristics, and therapeutic utility of stem cells, especially those of the hematopoietic system. A complete table of contents and free sample issue may be viewed on the Stem Cells and Development website.
About the Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Cellular Reprogramming, Tissue Engineering, and Human Gene Therapy. Its biotechnology trade magazine, GEN (Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News), was the first in its field and is today the industry’s most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm’s 80 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.