Medicine Grand Rounds: David J. Weber, Matthew Collins and Helen M. Lazear “Zika Virus Infection”

Researchers at UNC School of Medicine and UNC Hospitals are leading the charge in Zika research with more than 10 groups currently studying Zika – its transmission, its epidemiology and its associated neurological and birth defects, including microcephaly.

Dr. David Weber is a member of UNC Hospitals’ Zika Response Working Group, keeping clinic directors informed of Zika virus updates, providing UNC Health Care personnel and patients with pre- and post-travel counseling and evaluations, and developing a diagnostic testing algorithm. Weber’s research focuses on hospital-acquired infections, especially antibiotic-resistant pathogens and outbreak investigations.

Dr. Matthew Collins and his colleagues are trying to develop improved serodiagnostics to precisely define Zika virus exposure in those living in or traveling to endemic areas. Collins is also working with collaborators in UNC departments of obstetrics and gynecology, epidemiology, and family medicine, as well as colleagues in Leόn, Nicaragua, to define the epidemiology of Zika virus as it emerges in Nicaragua.

The Lazear lab is investigating the protective role of skin-specific antiviral effects of IFN-λ and is also identifying host factors that restrict vertebrate-specific flavivirus infection in mosquito cells. Dr. Helen Lazear’s lab also has developed a novel mouse model for studying Zika virus pathogenesis.