January 22, 2021
The team “Physiology and Physiopathology of the uro-genital tract” of IRSET (UMR1085 Inserm / EHESP / University of Rennes 1) in Rennes published an article in the Lancet Infectious Diseases.
This article demonstrates that the human testis is a reservoir for Zika virus (an emerging teratogenic virus that can be transmitted sexually), and that this organ contributes to the persistence of the virus in semen. In the semen of men who have been infected, we find testicular germ cells that persistently produce the virus for several months after symptoms have resolved.
Zika virus is an emerging virus transmitted by some mosquitoes. In adults, this virus usually induces mild symptoms which disappear within a few days. However, the Zika virus is responsible for serious congenital malformations (eg microcephaly) in the unborn child of women infected during pregnancy.
The last Zika virus outbreak in 2015-2016 in South America revealed that the Zika virus persists in the semen of infected men for several months after symptoms disappear, and that the virus can be sexually transmitted from these men. This transmission through semen has led to cases of infections in more than 14 countries outside the zone of circulation of vector mosquitoes. Sexual transmission would also play an important role in the dynamics of the epidemic in endemic areas and promote the acquisition of the virus in utero.
In this context, we have previously demonstrated that the human testis is infected with the Zika virus ex vivo (Matusali et al, Journal of Clinical Investigation 2018). In this correspondence published in the Lancet Infectious Diseases, we demonstrate that the human testis is a reservoir for the Zika virus, and that this organ contributes to the persistence of the virus in semen. In the semen of men who have been infected, we find testicular germ cells that persistently produce the virus for several months after symptoms disappear.
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