The scientists, Madhumati Sevvana, Feng Long, Andrew S. Miller, Thomas Klose, Geeta Buda, Lei Sun, Richard J. Kuhn, and Michael G. Rossmann, used the latest electron microscopy techniques to see the atomic details of the Zika virus structure.

They took advantage of Zika virus stability compared to its flavivirus cousins, such as dengue virus, Japanese encephalitis virus, and yellow fever virus, allowing for a particularly accurate three-dimensional atomic model.

"With the higher resolution, it is now possible to efficiently design vaccines and engineer anti-viral compounds that inhibit the virus," says Michael G. Rossmann, a structural biologist at Purdue University.

The research was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Story Source:

Materials provided by Cell Press. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.

Journal Reference:

1. Madhumati Sevvana, Feng Long, Andrew S. Miller, Thomas Klose, Geeta Buda, Lei Sun, Richard J. Kuhn, Michael G. Rossmann. Refinement and Analysis of the Mature Zika Virus Cryo-EM Structure at 3.1 Å Resolution. Structure, 2018; DOI: 10.1016/j.str.2018.05.006