Zika Virus: "It's possible that there may be some other co-factors involved."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/strong-signs-zika-virus-is-linked-to-birth-defects-says-cdc_us_5697bc20e4b0ce4964235f93

Are sick pigs the source of the Zika Virus problem in Pernambuco, Brazil?

Prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in slaughtered pigs in the state of Pernambuco, Brazil.

 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22263703

 

 Number of pigs in Pernambuco Brazil as of 2007: 495957

Source:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pernambuco

 

Pernambuco, Brazil was the last place to have an African Swine Fever outbreak in 1981.

Did they really ever get rid of it?

 https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0ahUKEwjkla6CsNLKAhWBcz4KHSy0B0wQFgggMAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.sciquest.org.nz%2Felibrary%2Fdownload%2F61326%2FImpact_of_African_swine_fever_in_Brazil_%253A_a_retros.pdf&usg=AFQjCNGvt-REsBSBt6s7fDF-2ChBnF0OOg&sig2=clZBX_A3XmVpA7bujxWv9g&bvm=bv.113034660,d.cWw&cad=rja

"Female mosquitoes — which are the only ones that bite, by the way — need to take a blood meal in order to reproduce. They can bite any vertebrate — birds, pigs, even reptiles, and, of course, humans. And since they are so mobile, they easily spread disease from one host to another. They act as syringes for transmitting viruses. What is happening now with the Zika virus, is what is happening among many other arboviruses, like dengue, West Nile and chikungunya: They all seem to be spreading westwards. And we’re undergoing a pandemic."

 http://newsblog.drexel.edu/2016/01/22/qa-is-zika-virus-a-threat-to-the-united-states/

 

 

 

Are pigs a source of Zika Virus in Recife, Brazil?

 "I just want to understand, how come no one is punished?" said the diminutive, 68-year-old widow, who cares for six grandchildren and three unemployed daughters and collects cans and bottles, along with garbage to feed her pigs in Recife's squalid Coque shantytown.

http://www.latimes.com/travel/la-trw-recife27apr27-story.html


"Female mosquitoes — which are the only ones that bite, by the way — need to take a blood meal in order to reproduce. They can bite any vertebrate — birds, pigs, even reptiles, and, of course, humans. And since they are so mobile, they easily spread disease from one host to another. They act as syringes for transmitting viruses. What is happening now with the Zika virus, is what is happening among many other arboviruses, like dengue, West Nile and chikungunya: They all seem to be spreading westwards. And we’re undergoing a pandemic."

 http://newsblog.drexel.edu/2016/01/22/qa-is-zika-virus-a-threat-to-the-united-states/

Are Pigs Spreading the Zika Virus?

 Zika virus: Outbreak 'likely to spread across Americas' says WHO - BBC News
http://news.yahoo.com/zika-virus-expected-spread-throughout-americas-115045026.html


 Zika virus (ZIKV) is a member of the Flaviviridae virus family and the Flavivirus genus.
 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zika_virus


Flaviviridae is a family of viruses. Humans and other mammals serve as natural hosts
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flaviviridae

Antibodies to West Nile virus and related flaviviruses in wild boar, red foxes and other mesomammals from Spain.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22595138 

Nonsuppurative encephalitis in piglets after experimental inoculation of Japanese encephalitis flavivirus isolated from pigs

 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14715969

 

 Brazil: world’s fourth biggest producer of pig meat

Brazil is the world’s fourth biggest producer of pig meat, producing 3,054,000 tonnes in 2008. This represents 2.9% of the total world

https://www.pig333.com/what_the_experts_say/pig-production-in-brazil-production-and-consumption-1-2_1359/