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Since October, northeastern Brazil has been devastated by a wave of microcephaly, a condition where babies are born with abnormally small heads and damaged brains. At this moment, all signs point to the mosquito-borne Zika, a little-studied virus normally associated only with rashes, fever, and other mild symptoms. In the months since Brazil sounded the alarm, Zika cases have been popped up in a dozen other countries, and health authorities predict the virus will spread across the Americas. Infectious disease specialist Michael Osterolm explains what’s known about Zika, and what we can expect as this outbreak unfolds.