Zika virus is an RNA athropod borne flavivirus, which was found in 1947 in Uganda in Monkey in Zika forest.Till 2007, there were only a few cases of this virus, till 2007 as it caused outbreak in Micronesia and 2013 in Polynesia. In 2014, there were car races in Brazil and this infection were brought to Brazil from some of symptomless carriers. In 2015, there were many cases of Zika virus. Moreover it caused the increased in case of Microcephaly, which found to be caused through this vrus. It is also well known that Zika infection is transmitted through mosquitoes called Aedes aegypti. This mosquito is known to be carrier of other arboviruses like Dengue viruses, Chikungunya viruses etc. The Zika virus infection needs therefore to be differentiated from these viruses. There are different methods available for detection of Zika virus. Serological tests have their own limitations e.g. they cross react with antibodies from Dengue virus, Chikungunya virus, St. Louis encephalitis virus, Westnile virus etc. Therefore there is a need of technology, which can really detect the Zika virus in samples. It is polymerase chain reactions. Therefore the realtime PCR test was developed as it is highly specific, accurate and sensitive. Moreover it can be used to detect these viruses from a different kinds of samples like urine, cerebrospinal fluid, blood, plasma, nervous tissue. It is well known that flaviviruses are known to infect nerve cells leading nervous disorders as well as endothelial cells, monocytes or macrophage and hepatic cells leading to rashes or internal leedings. Usually Zika virus infection is symptom to mild infection leading to self-recovery. Thesymptoms are rashes on the body, fever, conjunctivitis,These sympomless carriers pose a real threat during the blood transmission, if they are blood donors or semen donors. Therefore it makes sense that blood donors should be checked for the presence of this virus in infected areas or risk areas. Zika virus is known to cause Microcephaly, hence the only way to control this virus is through detection and isolation as there is no vaccine and therapy available. Moreover Zika virus infected patients show a new phenomenon of antibody dependent enhancement (ADE) i.e. antibodies of the first infection can speed up the second infection leading to fatal disease. This is an other reason why the vaccine for Zika virus and Dengue viruses can be delayed. Prevention through detection and vector control remains the only choice at present.

* only for research use.