The cloud of Ebola in West Africa has not yet completely dispersed, and the Zika virus is ringing alarm bells in Latin America and the Caribbean, and Brazil, which will soon host the Olympic Games, has become the hardest hit. How big is the threat to people? Will it be introduced into our country? This issue insert small science: Zika virus. What kind of virus is it? Zika virus is an insect-borne virus, flavivirus family flavivirus genus, similar to the B encephalitis virus, transmitted through the bite of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, generally can not be transmitted directly from person to person, but the possibility of sexual transmission can not be ruled out. The virus was first isolated in 1947 from a rhesus monkey in the Kar forest of Uganda, and was first isolated from human bodies in Nigeria in 1968. From 1951 to 1981, human cases of Zika virus infection were reported in several African countries as well as in some Asian countries. The Zika Virus, a virus that can cause congenital microcephaly in newborns, is currently spreading worldwide in Brazil after being transmitted by a mosquito bite. The World Health Organization (WHO) warned today (Jan. 25) that the Zika virus has spread throughout the Americas, with only Canada and Chile temporarily spared, a worrying situation. The Zika virus outbreak is most severe in the South American country of Brazil, where nearly 4,000 cases have been reported, and 21 of the 26 states are affected by Zika. Brazil will hold the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro this year, and authorities have said that the Rio de Janeiro venues used during the Olympics will be inspected daily to prevent the spread of the Zika virus, which is spread by mosquitoes. [What health damage can Zika virus cause? For most people, Zika infection is not particularly serious. Only about 20% of infected people will have symptoms, and a few will have a mild fever, sometimes diarrhea or a rash, headache, or muscle pain. Symptoms disappear within a week, and very few people need to be hospitalized. There is no specific medicine or vaccine for Zika, and the only way to relieve the condition is through rest, hydration, and painkillers. According to the CDC, there has never been a case of Zika causing death before. However, Zika is very dangerous for pregnant women, for whom the Zika virus is particularly vicious: it is suspected to be the cause of malformed brain development in babies. When a pregnant woman contracts this virus, it causes cranial deformities in the baby in the womb. The babies are born with apparently smaller heads than normal babies, and in most cases with mental retardation. This is a very serious birth defect, meaning that the fetal brain does not develop properly, often leading to death. The relationship between head malformation and the Zika virus has not been scientifically proven, but there is growing suspicion. Brazil reported nearly 4,000 cases to the WHO, three times as many as in 2010. Some countries in the Americas have even issued contraceptive warnings to women for this reason. The Olympics are just around the corner, but South America is awash in ZIKA] In August, Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro will host the Summer Olympics, but the city is now also reporting a rising number of Zika cases. Brazil’s Ministry of Health believes the source of the disease is obvious – the Zika virus, which originated in Africa and has gone unnoticed before. To control the outbreak, the Brazilian army has committed 160,000 army and 30,000 navy and air force troops to clearing mosquito breeding grounds. The Zika virus was first discovered in 1947 in monkeys in Uganda, Africa, and it was not until 2015 that the virus began to spread on a large scale, with the first stop being Brazil. The virus has been found in more than 20 countries in Latin America, and experts fear that it is spreading throughout the Americas, with the exception of Alaska and parts of Chile. The Zika virus is simply unrecognized by 80% of those infected. At present, there is no vaccine available for this virus, nor can it be cured with drugs, and controlling the spread of the epidemic is the key now. How far is the Zika virus from China? Some WHO officials predict that 3 to 4 million people could be infected with the virus in the coming December. WHO Director-General Margaret Chan said at a special meeting in Geneva on Thursday that the Zika virus is “spreading explosively” in the Americas, and she announced that an emergency meeting with independent experts will be held next week to decide whether to declare the current Zika outbreak an “international health emergency. “The meeting will be held next week with independent experts to decide whether to declare the current Zika outbreak an international health emergency. Margaret Chan said the Zika virus has now spread to 23 countries and regions in the Americas, and while there is no firm evidence that the Zika virus is linked to the spike in the number of microcephalic babies in Brazil, the resulting alarm is already very serious. The South Asian country of Singapore has recently been in the midst of a high dengue fever epidemic, and according to a report in the Straits Times, Singapore is also immune to the Zika virus at this time. With two reported cases of the Seca virus issued so far, it is theoretically possible for the Zika virus to be introduced into the country from South America and become endemic in the southern tropics. But it is unlikely to cause a widespread epidemic, our country is currently in winter, the mosquito vector is not active, not suitable for the spread of the virus, the possibility of epidemic is very small, the country need not panic.