According to the Daily Mail, the strain dubbed clade 1b was found in the gold mining town of Kamituga in the DRC's South Kivu province. It evolved from the more lethal clade 1 variant of the virus, which is endemic to Central Africa. Clade 1b showed increased infectiousness and an enhanced ability to evade detection by conventional testing methods.
The Mail added that Kamituga – a poor, densely populated town sustained by its gold mining industry – could fuel the spread of clade 1b outside the DRC's borders. The local population, which often travels for work, interacts frequently with neighboring countries – exacerbating the risk of monkeypox.
Congolese scientists and international collaborators reported the discovery in a pre-print study posted April 14 on medRxiv. It highlighted clade 1b's "pandemic potential" and underscored the necessity for swift international cooperation to prevent a widespread health crisis. According to the study's authors, the town's health facilities as ill-prepared to handle a surge in cases due to the lack of resources and infrastructure needed to combat a major outbreak.
"Without intervention, this localized Kamituga outbreak harbors the potential to spread nationally and internationally," they wrote. "Given the history of [monkeypox] outbreaks in the DRC, we advocate for swift action by endemic countries and the international community to avert another global [monkeypox] outbreak."
The report called for immediate global support to supply vaccines, the implementation of widespread testing and enhancement of local health services to manage and contain the virus effectively. ...<<<Read More>>>....