BRAZIL – More evidence linking the Zika virus to birth defects in babies has been found, scientists in Brazil say. The team at the PUC-Parana University discovered the virus in the brains of two babies who only lived for 48 hours.

The mosquito-borne virus is thought to cause microcephaly in babies, who are born with damaged brains and abnormally small heads. Brazil has about 460 confirmed cases of microcephaly, and is investigating about 3,850 suspected cases. The virus has spread throughout Latin-America, but Brazil has been hardest hit.

Scientists told the BBC that samples taken from the brain tissue of the two babies showed that the Zika virus was still actively present. The scientists have been following the pregnancies of 10 women in the north-eastern state of Paraiba – the second worst-hit by cases of microcephaly.(BBC)…[+]