New mpox strain is changing fast; African scientists are ‘working blind’ to respond

FILE PHOTO: An undated colorized transmission electron micrograph of mpox virus particles (red) found within an infected cell (brown) cultured in the laboratory, captured at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Integrated Research Facility (IRF) in Fort Detrick, Maryland. NIAID/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

LONDON/CHICAGO (Reuters) -Scientists studying the new mpox strain that has spread out of Democratic Republic of Congo say the virus is changing faster than expected, and often in areas where experts lack the funding and equipment to properly track it.

That means there are numerous unknowns about the virus itself, its severity and how it is transmitting, complicating the response, half a dozen scientists in Africa, Europe and the United States told Reuters.