The study, published Sept. 6, describes the effect of Zika virus infection on the eyes of mouse fetuses, newborns and adults and raises the possibility that the eye can function as a reservoir for Zika. Adult mouse models confirm that the virus can infect specific regions of the eye, resulting in uveitis and conjunctivitis (a symptom also observed in human patients).
The important question of whether Zika found in the human eye is infectious, through tears or any other medium, needs to be determined through further study. The researchers now are currently planning complementary studies in human patients infected with the virus.
鈥淓ven though we didn鈥檛 find live virus in mouse tears, that doesn鈥檛 mean that it couldn鈥檛 be infectious in humans,鈥� said Jonathan J. Miner, MD, PhD, an instructor in medicine and paper鈥檚 lead author. 鈥淭here could be a window of time when tears are highly infectious, and people are coming in contact with it and able to spread it.鈥�
鈥淲e are planning studies in people to find out whether infectious virus persists in the cornea, because that would have implications for corneal transplantation,鈥� said Rajendra S. Apte, MD, PhD, the Paul A. Cibis Distinguished Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, and one of the study鈥檚 senior authors.
Even if human tears do not turn out to be infectious, the researchers鈥� detection of live viruses in the eye and viral RNA in tears still has practical benefits. Human tears potentially could be tested for viral RNA or antibodies, a less painful way to diagnose recent Zika infection than drawing blood. The mouse eye could be used to test anti-Zika drugs, and once an effective treatment has been found, dosing in the eye would avoid side effects such as liver toxicity.
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Photo courtesy: Robert Boston at Washington University
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