MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Professor Ooi Eng Eong Programme in Emerging Infectious Diseases Duke-NUS Medical School Professor, Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health National University of Singapore Co-director, Viral Research And Experimental Medicine Centre MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: The emergence of Zika virus as a cause of fetal developmental disorder, or congenital Zika syndrome (CZS), mirrors the impact of congenital rubella syndrome on public health. Congenital rubella syndrome was controlled through the development of a live attenuated rubella virus vaccine that, when given to young children, elicited long-lasting immunity that protected against rubella well into adulthood. Indeed, live viral vaccines cause subclinical infection to elicit immunity that approaches those that develop following wild-type viral infection. However, the boundary between attenuated and virulent Zika virus has not been clearly defined, making development of any live attenuated Zika virus vaccine risky. (more…)