PLoS One: Zika virus in the treatment of cancer in high risk children -- neuroblastoma

July 26, 2018 / bioin / - neuroblastoma is the second most common tumor in children Even if it is treated effectively, the survival rate is very low Recently, scientists have found that Zika virus has potential anticancer activity in the process of seeking treatment for neuroblastoma Zika virus is a new mosquito borne pathogen Recent studies show that Zika virus is related to birth defects, so it is a unique arbovirus Recent studies have found that neural progenitor cells may be the target cells of Zika virus, and neuroblastoma may also respond to infection In this study, researchers found that neuroblastoma cells can be easily infected by Zika virus, showing a wide range of cytopathological effects (CPE) and producing a high concentration of virus However, it is difficult for a single cell line to respond to infection The nonstructural protein 1 (NS1) produced cannot be detected, CPE is limited, and the virus titer is very low By comparing these hard to infect cells with highly susceptible neuroblastoma cells, the researchers found that the surface of the hard to infect cells was lack of CD24, making these cells re express CD24 can make them produce a detectable concentration of NS1 after infection with Zika virus, at the same time, it also significantly increased CPE and virus titer These results were confirmed by supplementary experiments using Zika virus strains and North African isolates In general, these results indicate that CD24 plays a role in the process of Zika virus infection and provides a new target for the treatment of this infection In addition, Zika virus therapy may be an adjuvant therapy for neuroblastoma, which can target tumor cells that lead to tumor recurrence and treatment failure (BIOON Com) reference: Joseph Mazar et al Zika virus as an online treatment of human neuroblastoma cells requirements CD24 PLoS One Https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0200358