Cause Of Common Zika Virus Birth Defect Revealed by Colleen Fleiss on January 28, 2021 at 10:32 PM A new study has identified how Zika virus (ZIKV) causes one of the most common birth defects linked to prenatal infection, called brain calcification, according to new study findings published in Nature Microbiology. "Brain calcification has been linked to several developmental defects in infants, including motor disorders, cognitive disability, eye abnormalities, hearing deficits and seizures, so it's important to better understand the mechanisms of how they develop," said Jae Jung, PhD, director of Cleveland Clinic's Global Center for Pathogen Research & Human Health and lead author on the study. Dr. Jung, who is also chair of the Department of Cancer Biology, joined Cleveland Clinic from the University of Southern California in July.