Complex molecular structure in Zika virus

Researchers, led by scientists at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, have found basic molecular processes used by the Zika virus to “hijack” the cells that it infects and potentially how it makes molecules that are directly linked to disease. The discovery, published in the journal Science, shows that a part of the Zika virus’ RNA genome folds up into a complex structure and that this structure leads to the production of smaller RNAs that in related viruses are directly linked to disease. Viruses cannot reproduce on their own, they must infect cells and “hijack” the cell’s biological machinery in order to make more copies of themselves. To do this, viruses use many molecular strategies. Zika is an example of a virus that does not store its genome in DNA, rather it uses a related molecule called the viral genomic RNA. Viruses related to Zika, such as West Nile and Dengue, are...