Monkeypox, The New Unknown Disease

by Osman Mahdi

The new monkeypox disease is an enveloped virus with a double‐stranded DNA genome of around 190 kb. It is a viral zoonosis (a virus transmitted to humans from animals) with symptoms similar to those seen in the past in smallpox patients. Monkeypox virus is a member of the Orthopoxvirus genus in the family Poxviridae.

In more detail, monkeypox was discovered in 1958 when two outbreaks of a pox-like disease occurred in colonies of monkeys kept for research. Despite being named “monkeypox,” the source of the infection remains unknown. However, African rodents and non-human primates (like monkeys) might harbor the virus and infect people.

Most people are scared of monkeypox, but there is a vaccine for it. The vaccine is completely free. It has two doses, each 28 days apart from the other. Many people might mix monkeypox and COVID, but they have a lot of differences. First, monkeypox does not spread easily, unlike COVID. Infected people with monkeypox are more accessible to identify than the ones infected with COVID. Finally, monkeypox outbreaks are more straightforward to contain than COVID outbreaks.

It’s easier to contain infected people with monkeypox because it does not transmit from human to human very efficiently. Also, since it is easier to identify people infected with monkeypox, it is easier to quarantine them. For this, it is easier to stop the spreading of the disease.

In the end, monkeypox is a dangerous disease, but if we are careful and take the vaccine, then preventing it is possible.