Nation's Top Scientific Minds Gather For Forum On Zika Virus

WASHINGTON DC (KDKA) -- Researchers revealed a huge development today regarding Zika virus.

Zika now has been found in the semen of infected men, and researchers say the virus can live in semen for at least two months.

So, when it comes to reproduction, it now appears men, too, have reason for concern.

Until now, the focus had been on pregnant women or women who could become pregnant.

Zika has also been found in blood after a few days and urine for at least two weeks.

Dr. Lauren Riley, an OBGYN, says prevention is everything.

She says, "I'm telling women, and I'm being very direct, do not go to Brazil or Colombia or any of the areas where Zika virus is being transmitted currently. Because there's nothing that I'm going to be able to do once you return that's going to make you feel comfortable."

However, for women who have traveled, there's a blood test called IgM.

Riley says, "If your IgM is negative and your ultrasound is normal and you didn't have any symptoms, it is highly unlikely that you have transmitted Zika to your baby."

Those issues and many others were discussed Tuesday at a gathering of the nation's top scientific minds in Washington, D.C.

The goal of the conference at the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine was to pinpoint research priorities in the United States.

There are so many aspects to this and so many unknowns that you cannot feasibly go down every single road.

That is why a conference like this is held to narrow which research course the country is going to take.

Dr. Nicole Lurie is the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

She says, "Whether you're a pediatrician or obstetrician, whether you're a mom or pregnant woman, whether you're a climate or environmental scientist, whether you're a geneticist, an engineer, a social scientist, a modeler - every single sort of group of people you talk to has a really different perspective about what it is that's important."

Experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and across the country spoke on patterns of disease, the insects, the virus, the signs and symptoms and public health efforts.

Ronald Rosenberg works at the National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases at the CDC.

He says, "You get a bunch of scientists together and people throw out ideas, and you might not agree with an idea but mostly what we're going to try to do is to define what are the most important problems."

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The conference was broken up into two sessions.

In the morning session, experts discussed what is known and unknown about Zika.

For example, how does someone know if they have Zika?

Turns out everyone who gets it develops a rash, but only half of those get a fever.

Some of the key problems they're still trying to sort out is why Zika and why now?

It could be that the virus is changing to become more efficient in people, or it's taking advantage of a new group of people.

Other points brought up in the morning session:

Why is it so hard to control mosquitoes that carry Zika? Experts point to urban growth, debris, and the indoor nature of the mosquito.
How do you get Zika virus and the animals that carry Zika virus into the United States in a timely manner? The experts say several rules and regulations slow that down.
How do we share data on illnesses linked to Zika and on the mosquitoes? In other words, how do we get more global cooperation?

During the afternoon session, experts met in small groups to prioritize research for different areas, including: what the virus does, what to do about the mosquitoes, and what people will do and react to when recommendations are made.

This group of scientists from the CDC, universities and industries from across the country was assembled in just three weeks, which goes to show how urgent a threat this is and how important it is to come up with a plan.

Meanwhile, here in Pennsylvania only two cases of Zika have been confirmed.

Another eight tests have come back negative, and more than 50 others are still pending.