--- description: Inflammation and itch from mosquito bites help the virus replicate and spread disease, which has implications for Zika and dengue title: Mosquito Bite Itchiness Helps Viruses Spread image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt176cc0e5ad5d5db2/698898c1428a9e7f03cd3211/mosquito-bites.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Health](/section/health/) ## Health Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Infectious Disease](/tag/infectious-disease/) ## Infectious Disease Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Mosquito Bite Itchiness Helps Viruses Spread by [Alexandra Sifferlin](/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 21, 2016 4:00 PM CUT  Female of the Asian Tiger Mosquito (Aedes albopictus) biting on human skin and bloodfeeding to generate a new egg batch. Invasive, potentially disease-carrying species around the world, photographed in Catalonia, Spain, where it is present since 2004. Female of the Asian Tiger Mosquito (Aedes albopictus) biting on human skin and bloodfeeding to generate a new egg batch. Invasive, potentially disease-carrying species around the world, photographed in Catalonia, Spain, where it is present since 2004.Getty Images by [Alexandra Sifferlin](/author/alexandra-sifferlin/) ## Alexandra Sifferlin Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 21, 2016 4:00 PM CUT The purpose of a [mosquito bite’s itch](http://time.com/4177122/mosquitoes-diseases-zika-virus/ "undefined") might not be just to bother you. The bite’s very itchiness also helps viruses spread, according to a [new study](http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.immuni.2016.06.002 "undefined"). In the paper published in the journal _Immunity_, researchers report that the inflammation and itchiness that accompany mosquito bites both [help the virus spread around the body](http://time.com/4219582/zika-virus-how-spreads-mosquitoes/ "undefined") and increase the odds that the virus causes sickness. The study authors allowed some mice to be bitten by mosquitoes and then injected a virus into the bite site. They also injected a virus into mice without mosquito bites and compared the reactions. They found that when a mosquito injects its saliva into the skin, it spurs a response from the immune system which sends cells to the location of the bite. What was surprising, the researchers say, is that some of the immunity cells were infected and helped replicate the virus, allowing it to further spread. When the mice were infected with the virus without a mosquito bite, the virus did not replicate as well, suggesting the mosquito bite process plays a role in viral transmission through the body. Findings from mice studies cannot be directly translated to humans, but the study adds to the knowledge of how mosquitoes spread disease. “Inflammation caused by mosquito bites helps viruses to establish a successful infection,” says study author Clive McKimmie, a research fellow at the University of Leeds, in an email. “Mosquito bites are not just annoying but they are key for the virus to cause disease.” Viruses that can be spread through mosquito saliva include [Zika](http://time.com/4371779/zika-virus-birth-defects-us/ "undefined"), which is rapidly spreading through the Americas, as well as [dengue](http://time.com/4318624/zika-virus-and-birth-defects-what-you-need-to-know/ "undefined") and [chikungunya](http://time.com/3631711/chikungunya-epidemic-2014/?iid=sr-link1 "undefined"). But according to McKimmie, it can be hard for public health experts to predict which viruses will cause epidemics because there are so many different kinds. The Zika virus, for example, was not very well studied before the current outbreak because scientists did not know that it caused birth defects. “All these viruses have one thing in common: they start with a mosquito bite,” says McKimmie. “We hope that we can dampen the inflammation at the bite site using an anti-inflammatory cream.” By using such a treatment, McKimmie and his colleagues think it’s possible to stop the inflammation and spread of the disease through the body. 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