Major Question:
What are the consequences of ZIKV infection in iPS-derived NSCs ?
Panels A-D:
Confocal microscopy is an imaging technique used here to generate the images of iPS-derived NSCs double stained for:
(A) Red stains reveal the presence of ZIKAV, confirming it can infect the cells.
(B) Stains display the expression of the protein SOX2, which is involved in expression of genes for embryonic development (making it vital for the pluripotency of embryonic stem cells). This shows that the cells are still undifferentiated.
(C) DAPI staining is a technique of labeling the DNA on A-T rich regions. It can penetrate the membrane of both live & fixed cells, but it stains live cells less efficiently.
(D) All the 3 pictures are mixed together to show the localization of ZIKV.
Panel E:
Both concentrations of the virus (0.25 and 0.025 MOI) were effective (symbolized by the *) at infecting neural stem cells.
Panel F:
RT-PCR data shows the increase of virus production at 2 and 3 days.