Monkeypox virus
| Monkeypox virus | |
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| Virus classification | |
| Group: | Group I (dsDNA) |
| Order: | Unassigned |
| Family: | Poxviridae |
| Subfamily: | Chordopoxvirinae |
| Genus: | Orthopoxvirus |
| Type species | |
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Vaccinia virus |
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| Species | |
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Monkeypox virus |
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Monkeypox virus
Monkeypox virus (MPV) is a double-stranded DNA, zoonotic virus and a species of the genus Orthopoxvirus in the family Poxviridae. It is one of the human orthopoxviruses that includes variola (VARV), cowpox (CPX), and vaccinia (VACV) viruses. But it is not a direct ancestor to, nor a direct descendent of, the variola virus which causes smallpox. The monkeypox virus causes a disease that is similar to smallpox, but with a milder rash and lower death rate. Variation in virulence of the virus has been observed in isolates from Central Africa where strains are more virulent than those from Western Africa.
Monkeypox is carried by both animals and humans. It was first identified by Preben von Magnus in Copenhagen, Denmark in 1958 in crab-eating macaque monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) being used as laboratory animals. It has also been identified in the giant Gambian rat which was the source of a 2003 outbreak in the United States.
Monkeypox virus causes the disease in both humans and animals. The crab-eating macaque is often used for neurological experiments. The virus is mainly found in tropical rainforest regions of central and West Africa.
The virus can spread both from animal to human and from human to human. Infection from animal to human can occur via an animal bite or by direct contact with an infected animal’s bodily fluids. The virus can spread from human to human by both droplet respiration and contact with fomites from an infected person's bodily fluids. Incubation period is 10–14 days. Prodromal symptoms include swelling of lymph nodes, muscle pain, headache, fever, prior to the emergence of the rash.
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