Z is for Zika Virus

Image: Wellcome Images, Zika virus particle illustration

The Zika virus, first discovered in 1947, exploded in the media in 2015 because the virus, spread through mosquito bites, can be passed from a pregnant woman to her baby, and is suspected of causing the birth defect microcephaly. The virus can also be transmitted through sexual contact. During a Zika outbreak in Brazil between October 2015 and January 2016, the number of reported microcephaly cases rose to 3,500. (Wikipedia)

Image: Marcos Teixeira de Freitas, Aedes Aegypti, the mosquito that transmits the Zika virus

Talk about horrible timing! With the Olympic games scheduled for Rio that summer and travel warnings issued for pregnant women and male sexual partners of women who might get pregnant in the future, several athletes dropped out of the games including 14 high-ranking male golfers, one female golfer, and two tennis stars. (Source)

Image: brar_j, Microcephaly is an abnormal smallness of the head, a congenital condition with incomplete brain development

Since the connection between Zika and microcephaly hasn't been scientifically confirmed, there are many alternative conspiracy theories:

1. Blame genetically modified mosquitos.

A company called Oxitec genetically modified mosquitos so when the modified males mate with wild female mosquitos, their offspring would not survive due to a build up of a particular protein. This was done in an effort to slow down the transmission of diseases like dengue fever and chickungunya The modified male mosquitos were released in Brazil starting in 2011.

The genetically modified mosquitos have an on/off switch: tetracycline. In the labs, mosquitos are fed tetracycline to keep the population alive and multiplying. Once released into the target neighborhoods, without tetracycline, the male mosquitos and their young won't live long.

But guess what? Brazil feeds its food animals antibiotics like tetracycline which then gets into the environment through animal waste. So the question arose on whether or not the genetically modified mosquitos and their offspring were dying off as hoped.

Now, assuming they did survive long enough to bite people, exactly how the bite of genetically modified mosquito translates to birth defects isn't clear to me, but I'll move on because this post is getting too long as it is.


2. Blame pesticides

The pesticide Pyriproxyfen was put into Brazil's water supplies to halt the development of mosquito larvae in 2014, about a year before the microcephaly outbreak. So considering a human pregnancy lasts nine months, the timing is right. Conspiracy theorists claimed other areas of the world dealing with Zika, like Columbia, have not seen outbreaks of microcephaly linked to Zika. (Source)

But not so fast. Columbia isn't a fair comparison. Their Zika cases started in October of 2016, so there's not been enough time for microcephaly to be detected in their pregnant women yet, and many pregnant women have decided to have abortions. (Source) Also, when researchers took another look at a Zika outbreak in French Polynesia in 2013 and 2014, they did find a spike in microcephaly cases. (Source)

Debunkers also point out that pyriproxyfen has been around humans for many years in products like home and lawn pesticides and flea and tick control for pets.

3. Blame vaccines

In 2013, whooping cough (pertussis) was a big problem in Brazil. So in 2014, the Tdap vaccine was mandated for pregnant women. Like the pesticide theory, the timing fits for birth defects to show up about a year later. Some people suspect Tdap because this vaccine has not been tested in pregnant women and has caused brain inflammation in babies and children under 5 (among other concerns). (Source)

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And that's all folks! I've enjoyed sharing these conspiracy theories with all of you. I'll still be catching up on returning comments for several days. If I missed returning your comment, I sincerely apologize.

What are you going to spend your extra time on now that the A to Z Blog Challenge is done?