@article{10.1172/jci.insight.88461, author = {Kellie Ann Jurado AND Michael K. Simoni AND Zhonghua Tang AND Ryuta Uraki AND Jesse Hwang AND Sarah Householder AND Mingjie Wu AND Brett D. Lindenbach AND Vikki M. Abrahams AND Seth Guller AND Erol Fikrig}, journal = {JCI Insight}, publisher = {The American Society for Clinical Investigation}, title = {Zika virus productively infects primary human placenta-specific macrophages}, year = {2016}, month = {8}, volume = {1}, url = {https://insight.jci.org/articles/view/88461}, abstract = {The strong association of Zika virus infection with congenital defects has led to questions of how a flavivirus is capable of crossing the placental barrier to reach the fetal brain. Here, we demonstrate permissive Zika virus infection of primary human placental macrophages, commonly referred to as Hofbauer cells, and placental villous fibroblasts. We also demonstrate Zika virus infection of Hofbauer cells within the context of the tissue ex vivo using term placental villous explants. In addition to amplifying infectious virus within a usually inaccessible area, the putative migratory activities of Hofbauer cells may aid in dissemination of Zika virus to the fetal brain. Understanding the susceptibility of placenta-specific cell types will aid future work around and understanding of Zika virus–associated pregnancy complications.}, number = {13}, doi = {10.1172/jci.insight.88461}, url = {https://doi.org/10.1172/jci.insight.88461}, }