The World Health Organization has issued a public health emergency due to the Zika virus, a mosquito-borne illness that can cause serious problems for expectant mothers. Studies say the virus can cause birth defects in unborn babies. The disease has swept through Brazil and Mexico and is now reported in the United States. A pharmaceutical company in Ames is trying to help in the fight.

NewLink Genetics announced yesterday that they have started developing treatment options for the Zika virus. The company said that its infectious disease division has evaluated several approaches to treating the disease. This isn't the first dangerous outbreak the company has dealt with.

The company was in the spotlight the past two years during the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. NewLink obtained an experimental vaccine for Ebola and then worked out a deal to develop and manufacture the vaccine.

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