News Releases & Research Results Proposal of measures for controlling Zika fever in its endemic areas based on survey results of the Zika virus epidemic in Vietnam

News Releases & Research Results

Outline

The results of collaborative research conducted by Professor Futoshi Hasebe and Associate Professor Moi Meng Ling of the Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, Dr. Le Thi Quynh Mai of the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (NIHE), and others.

The key results of research are as follows:

  • The status of the Zika virus epidemic in Vietnam was clarified by a field survey in more than 600 Zika fever patients by anti-IgM antibody(*1) testing, real-time RT-PCR(*2), and molecular phylogenetic analysis(*3). Also, the period when the Zika virus that was prevalent in South America spread to Vietnam could be predicted.
    *1: Antibodies first produced upon bacterial or viral infection, which can be used for blood testing to determine the type of infectious disease.
    *2: Method for monitoring and analyzing gene amplification in real time with a fluorescent reagent.
    *3: Nucleotide sequence analysis to elucidate biological or gene lineages.
  • Specifically, Zika virus spread from the Philippines, Thailand, or South American countries to Vietnam between 2012 and 2014, i.e., several years before 2016 when the initial outbreak was confirmed in Vietnam.
  • Based on the research factors and issues relevant to the spread of Zika fever were extracted, a proposal was made regarding measures against infectious diseases, and relevant information was provided to the Ministry of Health, Vietnam, and the WHO.
This research project conducted with the support of Japan Initiative for Global Research Network on Infectious Diseases (J-GRID) by the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED).

The results of research were published in the English medical journal Lancet Infectious Diseases” on January 30.

Article

Hasebe F., et al. Long-term surveillance needed to detect Zika virus outbreaks in endemic regions Lancet Infectious Diseases

DOI:10.1016/S1473-3099(19)30677-2

01/30/20

Last updated 01/30/20