Study shows potential Zika vaccine completely protects mice

Just one dose of an experimental Zika vaccine provided mice with 100 percent protection against a potentially lethal dose of the virus, researchers report. The quick spread of the Zika virus and its devastating effects on the brain development of babies have made the need for a vaccine to protect against this mosquito-borne virus a global issue. Currently, the main way to ward off the virus is to avoid mosquito bites. The vaccine relies on technology previously used to create experimental vaccines for HIV and Ebola virus. Tests of the vaccine were done at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Colorado, with funding by a grant from the CDC. The new vaccine targets a specific Zika virus protein called NS1. This protein interferes with the mosquito immune system, which allows the virus to replicate. “A vaccine that can induce effective antibodies to NS1 and disable its function has the potential to...