Zika Virus, Microcephaly Risk, New Vaccines, Mosquito Extinction

Estimates in the press claim 3000-4000 microcephaly babies have been born in Brazil alone due to Zika virus infections in women while pregnant. Maybe. You might be surprised to learn that the Zika-microcephaly link has not yet been proven. Here are rough calculations on whether the threat is real. The scientific jury is still out. Do not panic. Suppose the threat is real. A BBC story puts a vaccine a decade away: Zika virus: US scientists say vaccine '10 years away' But a Reuters story has Inovio Pharmaceuticals ready to start testing an emergency vaccine in several months for use before year's end. Faced with the prospect of tens of thousands of microcephaly babies how will governments respond? Will they...
Source: FuturePundit - Category: Research Authors: Source Type: blogs