Monkeypox is a rare viral infectious disease similar to human smallpox caused by monkeypox virus. It is also a zoonosis. Mainly found in the rainforest regions of central and western Africa. It was first found in green monkeys in the Copenhagen laboratory in Denmark in 1958, and it was later found that many African rodents, such as mice and rabbits, could be infected with monkeypox virus. In 1070, human cases of monkeypox were first reported in Congo. In May 2003, the first group of monkeypox patients appeared and spread rapidly in the United States of the Western Hemisphere, which immediately attracted close attention from countries all over the world.
Monkeypox virus is the largest and most complex group of animal viruses, with many species and complex structures. Smallpox is a typical species. After the monkeypox virus invades the human body from the respiratory mucosa, temporary viremia occurs when the lymphocytes proliferate and invade the bloodstream, propagate in the cells, and then run to the skin development and reproduction of the whole body to cause pathological changes.
Monkeypox virus is mainly transmitted to humans through animals. People are bitten by infected animals or come into direct contact with the blood and body fluids of infected animals to infect the disease. The proportion of human-to-human transmission in all cases was reported differently in each epidemic, but its infectivity was lower than that of smallpox. Currently, the longest human-to-human transmission has only been recorded for 5 generations. It can be transmitted by close transmission of respiratory droplets or direct contact with body fluids, secretions, wounds or viral contaminants of the infected person.
As the number of monkeypox cases continues to rise around the world, many biological companies are looking for a vaccine against the disease with the help of various vaccine technologies， and health regulators around the world are on high alert.
Monkeypox is a zoonotic virus that spreads mainly among animals but has been endemic in a number of African countries for many years, including Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic. So far, cases in Europe have generally been directly related to travel history. Currently, health officials are identifying a wider spread.
Monkeypox virus is a close relative of smallpox virus, and the smallpox vaccine has been found to be effective against monkeypox. So far, there are two approved smallpox vaccines in the United States, produced by Acambis (acquired by Sanofi) and Bavarian Nordic.
In addition to preclinical trials for monkeypox vaccines, Moderna is also developing vaccines against COVID, influenza, the common cold and RSV.
Unlike the COVID-19 virus, which is mainly transmitted through air and droplets, monkeypox is infected through close physical contact. Rosamund Lewis, MD, Secretariat of the World Health Organization’s smallpox team, said that people infected with the disease often develop a rash transmitted through contact.
So far, at least 92 cases have been confirmed in 21 countries where the disease is not normally found, and another 28 cases are under investigation.