| Abstract | Zika virus (ZIKV) is single stranded RNA virus that has raised global health concerns in recent years, causing diseases such as Guillain-Barré Syndrome, adult meningoencephalitis, and fetal microencephaly. ZIKV is known to interfere with the host innate immune system, the first line of defense against viral pathogens. ZIKV inhibits the production of Interferon-beta (IFN-beta), an essential cell signaling molecule for the immune system, by interfering with proteins along the signaling pathway leading to the activation of interferon gene expression. The goal of this research is to identify the role of ZIKV nonstructural protein NS5 in antagonizing the innate immune response. We hypothesize that ZIKV NS5 binds to a protein within the antiviral signaling pathway, thus inhibiting the pathway and decreasing IFN-beta production. This research focuses on the impact of NS5 on cytokine production as well as the mechanisms by which the viral protein is able to achieve this result. |
