There are more than 3,500 cases of the virus in 44 countries globally.
Researchers investigating the monkeypox virus said it appears to have mutated at an unprecedented rate — much quicker than experts initially predicted, according to a new study., found that there were an average of 50 mutations in samples from this year when only up to 10 would typically be expected.
In the study, a group of Portuguese researchers analyzed the first monkeypox sequence publicly released on May 20, along with 14 additional sequences released before May 27. Researchers discovered around 50 genetic variations in the viruses, a figure six to 12 times higher than previous studies of other orthopoxviruses, a family of viruses to which monkeypox belongs.Monkeypox can cause blisters, pimples and lesions on the skin.João Paulo Gomes, a co-author and the head of the Genomics and Bioinformatics Unit at the National Institute of Health in Portugal, said the number of mutations was “quite unexpected.
“Considering that this 2022 monkeypox virus is likely a descendant of the one in the 2017 Nigeria outbreak, one would expect no more than five to 10 additional mutations instead of the observed about 50 mutations,” he A man is vaccinated at a monkeypox vaccination clinic run by CIUSSS public health authorities in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.“We hope that now, specialized groups will perform laboratory experiments in order to understand if this 2022 virus has increased its transmissibility.”Monkeypox, a viral infection that causes skin lesions, is endemic in certain parts of Africa. But the current outbreak has hit countries where the virus does not usually spread, sparking concern.
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