 "Zika virus may increase mental illness risk, say researchers")
A baby with a shrunken, misshapen head is surely a heartbreaking sight. But reproductive health experts are warning that microcephaly may be only the most obvious consequence of the spread of the Zika virus.
Even infants who appear normal at birth may be at higher risk for mental illnesses later in life if their mothers were infected during pregnancy, many researchers fear.
The Zika virus, they say, closely resembles some infectious agents that have been linked to the development of autism, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.
But illnesses in utero, including viral infections, are thought to be a trigger.
"The consequences of this go way beyond microcephaly," said W Ian Lipkin, who directs The Centre for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University.
Among children in Latin America and the Caribbean, "I wouldn't be surprised if we saw a big upswing in ADHD, autism, epilepsy and schizophrenia," he added. "We're looking at a large group of individuals who may not be able to function in the world."
Researchers in Brazil are investigating thousands of reports of microcephalic births. While there is no solid proof that Zika virus is the cause, virologists studying the outbreak strongly suspect it.
Although the virus was discovered in 1947, there has been no research into its long-term consequences. Scientists are left to draw inferences from what is known of similar infections.
In interviews, psychiatric researchers specialising in fetal development agreed with Lipkin's pessimistic prognosis.
A viral attack early in pregnancy can kill a fetus or stunt the growing brain, producing microcephaly, they explained. An infection later in the fetus's development, when the brain is nearly fully formed, can do damage that is less obvious but still significant.
"It is pretty scary," said Urs Meyer, a behavioural neurobiologist at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich who studies the consequences of fetal infections in lab animals. "These problems are on a continuous scale, and whether you end up with autism or schizophrenia is complex - and we really can't predict it."
"It can happen with a variety of viruses and other infectious agents, but we don't know how often," said E Fuller Torrey, executive director of the Stanley Medical Research Institute in Chevy Chase, Maryland.
Torrey noted that Rosemary Kennedy, sister of President of John F Kennedy, was born in 1918 during the Spanish flu epidemic. She suffered mental disabilities as a child and developed schizophrenia-like symptoms at age 20. Although some historians have attributed her disabilities to a lack of oxygen at birth, Torrey believes that viral infection in utero is "the most likely" explanation.
The possibility that in utero infection could contribute to mental illness first emerged with an observation in 1988 by Finnish researchers that children born during the 1957 "Asian flu" epidemic had high rates of schizophrenia later in life.
Researchers have long noted that schizophrenia is highest in adults who were born in winter and early spring - just after the peak of flu season.
©2016 The New York Times News Service
Even infants who appear normal at birth may be at higher risk for mental illnesses later in life if their mothers were infected during pregnancy, many researchers fear.
The Zika virus, they say, closely resembles some infectious agents that have been linked to the development of autism, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.
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Schizophrenia and other debilitating mental illnesses have no single cause, experts emphasised in interviews. The conditions are thought to arise from a combination of factors, including genetic predisposition and traumas later in life, such as sexual or physical abuse, abandonment or heavy drug use.
But illnesses in utero, including viral infections, are thought to be a trigger.
"The consequences of this go way beyond microcephaly," said W Ian Lipkin, who directs The Centre for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University.
Among children in Latin America and the Caribbean, "I wouldn't be surprised if we saw a big upswing in ADHD, autism, epilepsy and schizophrenia," he added. "We're looking at a large group of individuals who may not be able to function in the world."
Researchers in Brazil are investigating thousands of reports of microcephalic births. While there is no solid proof that Zika virus is the cause, virologists studying the outbreak strongly suspect it.
Although the virus was discovered in 1947, there has been no research into its long-term consequences. Scientists are left to draw inferences from what is known of similar infections.
In interviews, psychiatric researchers specialising in fetal development agreed with Lipkin's pessimistic prognosis.
A viral attack early in pregnancy can kill a fetus or stunt the growing brain, producing microcephaly, they explained. An infection later in the fetus's development, when the brain is nearly fully formed, can do damage that is less obvious but still significant.
"It is pretty scary," said Urs Meyer, a behavioural neurobiologist at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich who studies the consequences of fetal infections in lab animals. "These problems are on a continuous scale, and whether you end up with autism or schizophrenia is complex - and we really can't predict it."
"It can happen with a variety of viruses and other infectious agents, but we don't know how often," said E Fuller Torrey, executive director of the Stanley Medical Research Institute in Chevy Chase, Maryland.
Torrey noted that Rosemary Kennedy, sister of President of John F Kennedy, was born in 1918 during the Spanish flu epidemic. She suffered mental disabilities as a child and developed schizophrenia-like symptoms at age 20. Although some historians have attributed her disabilities to a lack of oxygen at birth, Torrey believes that viral infection in utero is "the most likely" explanation.
The possibility that in utero infection could contribute to mental illness first emerged with an observation in 1988 by Finnish researchers that children born during the 1957 "Asian flu" epidemic had high rates of schizophrenia later in life.
Researchers have long noted that schizophrenia is highest in adults who were born in winter and early spring - just after the peak of flu season.
©2016 The New York Times News Service