Zika Virus Could Affect 4 Million People

1. What do you know about the Zika virus?
I don’t know a lot about the Zika virus; during the outbreak in 2015 mentioned in the article, I was too busy being pregnant, getting my driving license, and moving to a newly bought apartment, all at the same time.
2. How worried are you about the Zika virus?
I am not worried about the Zika virus. As said in the article, it “could turn into a global pandemic” but we all know it did not; instead, we had the COVID-19 pandemic very recently, and it was terrible indeed. But we survived. I hope this experience has taught many people about the importance of vaccination.
3. Will there be a vaccine for all viruses one day?
No, this is impossible as viruses evolve constantly, as well as bacteria. It is the same as “cancer cure” — cancer is a word that includes hundreds of different diagnoses.
4. If there are no diseases, will there be an overpopulation problem?
It is possible indeed. It is very well described in the anti-utopic book “Future” by Dmitry Glukhovsky. He imagines the world where all diseases have been eliminated and people can live forever. However, if a couple wants to have a child, they must decide which one of them will die, as it is no more possible to bring new people to this planet. I highly recommend this book.
5. Why would it be a problem to find a vaccine for the Zika virus?
Drug discovery and development costs millions (sometimes billions) of dollars, and there are also ethical issues involved. One of the reasons it would be difficult to investigate such a vaccine is that it should be tested in pregnant women, which is ethically complicated, although not completely impossible – for example, there are HIV studies in pregnant women.