Anti-anxiety drugs may prevent common viruses from causing birth defects

there is currently no vaccine against cytocytovirus.a study of newborn mice that showed anti-anxiety drugs could prevent a common virus from causing birth defects and deafness. The results were published
Journal.
4 out of every 1,000 babies is infected with cytocytovirus (CMV). The virus can cause epilepsy and intellectual disabilities, as well as Zika-like symptoms, including microcephaly. CMV can also cause deafness. It is usually passed on to the baby during pregnancy. Some babies are born with clear signs of infection, and some do not develop symptoms until later.
anti-anxiety drug, available in France and Italy, appears to reduce CMV levels in infected mice. However, it is not clear whether it will have a similar effect on the brain, the area where CMV causes the most damage.
, Anthony Van den Pol and her team injected infected mice with a one-day dose of nominide or a controlled substance. "Mice injected with noamide were more likely to survive. They live longer and weigh more - everything about them looks better. Van den Pol said.
when evaluated "adolescents", mice treated with noamide did not show abnormal social response and impaired movement seen in control mice infected with CMV. Further tests in human brain cells, known as astrocytes (targets of CMV attacks), showed that when these cells were treated with nocrylamide, the number of viruses present decreased to one percent.
although a drug called ecsilovir can be used in some populations to fight CMV, it cannot be given to pregnant women because it is at risk of causing birth defects.
" currently does not have a vaccine for CMV. Therefore, it is not possible to protect pregnant women from infection and to transfer to unborn babies. Ian Humphreys, a CMV researcher at cardiff University in the UK, said: "The new approach is definitely needed. (Source: Science.com Zonghua)