A sign announcing monkeypox vaccination is setup in Tropical Park by Miami-Dade County and Nomi Health on August 15, 2022 in Miami, Florida. Photo: AFP

The local transmission of monkeypox virus has been significantly suppressed in Beijing, and all monkeypox virus genomes are highly homologous to those currently circulating in East and Southeast Asia, the China Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in a recent report.

In late May this year, the first recorded case of indigenous monkeypox infection appeared in Beijing.One was an imported case, while the other was a close contact of the imported case. Since then, the number of confirmed monkeypox cases has increased and spread in Beijing and other places in China.

Within two months, local transmission had been significantly suppressed. Despite this, the genetic characteristics of monkeypox virus in China remain largely unexplored even though health and disease control authorities quickly initiated epidemiological investigations and source tracing, the research team said.

However, the research team analyzed 84 monkeypox genomes from 82 indigenous cases and two imported cases detected in Beijing between May and July. They found that all monkeypox virus genomes have a high degree of homology with genomes currently circulating in East and Southeast Asia, which will provide important information for strengthening monkeypox containment strategies in the future.

Previously, monkeypox was mainly prevalent in Central and West Africa but there have been reported monkeypox cases in 111 countries and regions across the world. As of August this year, the outbreak has caused 89,000 confirmed cases in 114 countries, resulting in 157 deaths.

In September 2022, Southwest China's Chongqing Municipality reported the first monkeypox case in the Chinese mainland. The number of monkeypox infections continued to rise in August to 501 cases, among which five were female. It was the first time that monkeypox infections of females had been reported in China.

The Chinese national health authority has enhanced management of monkeypox infections, putting them under Class-B-infection management -- the same level as COVID-19 -- since September 20.

The Beijing disease control authority said Monkeypox is a self-limiting disease, and the symptoms usually disappear within two to four weeks.
It said the public should avoid close contact, especially male-male sexual contact, with individuals who have monkeypox and close contact with wildlife in high-risk countries.

Moreover, the virus is mainly transmitted through direct contact with skin or mucous membranes, according to the Chinese national health authorities. By promptly identifying infected cases and isolating and treating them in a timely manner, the transmission of monkeypox can be avoided and it can ultimately be brought under control, the authorities said.

Three mRNA vaccines developed by China National Pharmaceutical Group Corporation (Sinopharm) can provide effective protection against monkeypox, the latest study showed, suggesting that the vaccines enhance immunogenicity and can be a viable alternative to current whole-virus vaccines to defend against monkeypox.

Global Times