The US Centers for Disease Control and Research (CDC) have just launched a massive collection of semen samples from all men who have been infected with the Zika virus. Objective of this call for donations: to determine how long the virus remains active in the body fluid.
Need 250 donors
Zika virus is mainly transmitted by the tiger mosquito but it can also be sexually transmitted. About 40 men carrying the virus have already answered the CDC’s call, but scientists hope to recruit at least 210 more to reach a cohort of 250 people for their study.
Each participant agrees to donate a dozen sperm at the rate of one donation every two weeks for the six months following the declaration of the disease. In exchange, they receive a voucher worth US $ 50 for each donation. The CDC laboratory in Fort Collins, Colorado will be responsible for carrying out the analyzes.
According to the CDC, 14 cases of sexual transmission of the virus have already been recorded, including one case of transmission from a woman to a man.
Read also: our special report on the Zika virus
