What the Zika virus does to male mice
New study shows that the Zika virus shriveled male mice’s reproductive parts by 90 per cent, severely reducing fertility. Zika virus ravages the testes of male mice, reducing sperm counts and fertility. The virus attacks the body structure where sperm are made and reach maturity. Experiments found output of useful sperm fell by three quarters. The infected male mice were able to impregnate females at about one-fourth the normal rate and the impregnated females had less than half the number of fetuses. The virus is known to infect a man’s reproductive system and persist in sperm and semen. The Zika virus is a minor disease in most people but it can cause birth defects if women are infected while pregnant or about to become pregnant. The Zika virus can have devastating defects in babies’ brains.
http://www.delta-optimist.com/opinion/blogs/blog-what-the-zika-virus-does-to-male-mice-1.2408921
