敲響世界警鈴的陌生傢伙──茲卡病毒

Global Alarm of Emerging Zika Virus Infections

2015年，一個名為茲卡的黃病毒科病毒引起全球極大重視，茲卡病毒擁有和登革熱病毒相似的傳染方式及流行區域。追溯其起源，發現有分別來自非洲及東南亞的兩種病毒株，2015在中南美洲爆發的疫情則由源自東南亞的病毒株引發。這隻病毒經過幾十年的傳播演化，逐步發展出攻擊宿主神經系統的能力，其中又以新生兒小頭症最廣為人知。此新興傳染病促使各國競相投入疾病防治與研究。本文將針對近一年來，對於此病毒之傳染途徑、神經學症狀之關聯性、生物防治及疫苗開發等作闡述。台灣是登革熱的流行區域，也同是茲卡病毒入侵的高危險區，對茲卡病毒多一分認識，就多一分防疫的把握。

An ancient virus named ‘Zika’ became one of the most well-known emerging pathogens worldwide since 2015. This flavivirus shares similar patterns of transmission routes and epidemiology with dengue virus, which exists mainly in tropical and sub-tropical regions. Two different strain lineages were found for Zika virus, one from Africa, and the other from Southeast Asia. Current evidence suggests that the latter strain has caused the outbreaks in the Caribbean countries since 2015. Various newly recognized neurological complications are increasingly reported to be associated with Zika virus infection. The vector-borne disease is regarded as a major event in emerging infectious disease in the 21st century. This article is focused on the Zika virus, updating information on epidemiology, biological control agents, and vaccine development. As a member of the Southeast Asian nations, we are expected to encounter Zika virus in the near future. Understanding of this pathogen will be the very first step to control diseases associated with Zika.