The recent Zika virus (ZIKV) epidemic in the Americas has revealed rare but serious manifestations of infection. ZIKV has emerged in regions endemic for dengue virus (DENV), a closely related mosquito-borne flavivirus. Cross-reactive antibodies confound studies of ZIKV epidemiology and pathogenesis. The immune responses to ZIKV may be different in people, depending on their DENV immune status. Here, we focus on the human B cell and antibody response to ZIKV as a primary flavivirus infection to define the properties of neutralizing and protective antibodies generated in the absence of preexisting immunity to DENV. The plasma antibody and memory B cell response is highly ZIKV type–specific, and ZIKV-neutralizing antibodies mainly target quaternary structure epitopes on the viral envelope. To map viral epitopes targeted by protective antibodies, we isolated 2 type-specific monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) from a ZIKV case. Both mAbs were strongly neutralizing in vitro and protective in vivo. The mAbs recognize distinct epitopes centered on domains I and II of the envelope protein. We also demonstrate that the epitopes of these mAbs define antigenic regions commonly targeted by plasma antibodies in individuals from endemic and nonendemic regions who have recovered from ZIKV infections.
Matthew H. Collins, Huy A. Tu, Ciara Gimblet-Ochieng, Guei-Jiun Alice Liou, Ramesh S. Jadi, Stefan W. Metz, Ashlie Thomas, Benjamin D. McElvany, Edgar Davidson, Benjamin J. Doranz, Yaoska Reyes, Natalie M. Bowman, Sylvia Becker-Dreps, Filemón Bucardo, Helen M. Lazear, Sean A. Diehl, Aravinda M. de Silva
Usage data is cumulative from January 2024 through January 2025.
Usage | JCI | PMC |
---|---|---|
Text version | 809 | 189 |
83 | 58 | |
Figure | 166 | 52 |
Table | 71 | 0 |
Supplemental data | 28 | 6 |
Citation downloads | 53 | 0 |
Totals | 1,210 | 305 |
Total Views | 1,515 |
Usage information is collected from two different sources: this site (JCI) and Pubmed Central (PMC). JCI information (compiled daily) shows human readership based on methods we employ to screen out robotic usage. PMC information (aggregated monthly) is also similarly screened of robotic usage.
Various methods are used to distinguish robotic usage. For example, Google automatically scans articles to add to its search index and identifies itself as robotic; other services might not clearly identify themselves as robotic, or they are new or unknown as robotic. Because this activity can be misinterpreted as human readership, data may be re-processed periodically to reflect an improved understanding of robotic activity. Because of these factors, readers should consider usage information illustrative but subject to change.