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Two Republican lawmakers leading a congressional hearing on the Zika virus Wednesday said they hope pregnant women who become infected will not have abortions to avoid giving birth to children with a birth defect. (Kaplan, 2/10)

Federal health officials on Wednesday said the U.S. can expect to see a significant number of Zika cases in Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories where the mosquito that spreads it is likely to appear. On the U.S. mainland, though, the virus’s impact is likely to follow the pattern seen by dengue, another mosquito-borne viral disease, Tom Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told members of two House Foreign Affairs subcommittees in a joint hearing. The dengue virus has appeared in Hawaii, Florida and Texas but hasn’t been widespread throughout the country. (Armour, 2/10)

A Roman Catholic group appealed to Pope Francis on Wednesday to allow Church members to "follow their conscience" and use contraception or to let women have abortions to protect themselves against the Zika virus. The appeal came as the World Health Organization (WHO) advised women in areas with the virus to protect themselves, especially during pregnancy, by covering up against mosquitoes and practising safe sex with their partners. (Pullella, 2/10)

The World Health Organisation advised women on Wednesday on how to protect themselves from Zika, particularly if pregnant, but also reassured them that most women in areas affected by the mosquito-borne virus will give birth to "normal infants." (2/10)

New details about the possible effects of the Zika virus on the fetal brain emerged Wednesday as U.S. health officials say mosquito eradication here and abroad is key to protect pregnant women until they can develop a vaccine. European researchers uncovered an extremely abnormal brain — not only a fraction of the proper size but lacking the usual crinkly neural folds — in a fetus whose mother suffered Zika symptoms at the end of the first trimester while she was living in Brazil. (Neergaard, 2/10)

A new report paints a heartbreaking portrait of the damage suffered by babies with microcephaly, a normally rare birth defect linked to the Zika outbreak in Brazil. New research suggests that the damage can go far beyond the size of a baby's skull, and that babies with microceophaly who survive their infancy may need a level of intensive care that is in short supply in the developing countries and territories hardest hit by Zika. (Szabo, 2/10)

Sun-starved Midwesterners headed to balmy areas known to have Zika-carrying mosquitoes are being urged to cover up — with protective clothing and bug spray — to help prevent transmission of the virus. (Price, 2/11)