Smile, Zika virus. We see you.
Scientists now know what the mysterious and dangerous virus looks like.
Using advanced technology that enables them to see the tiniest of objects, a team of researchers at Purdue University was able to get a detailed look at the virus structure. The revelation yields valuable information that can be used to develop a vaccine.
"The recent rapid spread of Zika virus and its linkage to birth defects and an autoimmune-neurological syndrome has generated worldwide concern," researchers wrote in the journal, Science, which published their findings.
Earlier this year, the World Health Organization declared "a public health emergency of international concern" over the outbreak. The virus has been reported in 33 countries.
Zika is transmitted to people by mosquitoes and is part of a family of viruses that includes dengue, West Nile, yellow fever, Japanese encephalitis and tick-borne encephalitic viruses.
"Determining the structure greatly advances our understanding of Zika — a virus about which little is known," Richard Kuhn, the lead researcher, said in a statement about the study.
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