Zika virus (ZIKV) is a Flavivirus spread by infected Aedes mosquitoes. Although the virus has been known since 1947, it hit the headlines in 2015 with major outbreaks in Brazil and other Latin American countries as well as the Caribbean. Cases of microcephaly, in which babies are born with abnormally small heads, were reported in large numbers and sent the public health systems into a flurry of activity in these countries. The situation worsened so much that the World Health Organization (WHO) in February 2016 declared ZIKV to be a Public Health Emergency of international proportions.
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