“It’s not worth it yet to be afraid of large outbreaks among people”: virologist Pyotr Chumakov - on the degree of danger of monkeypox

- Tell us what is monkeypox, the outbreak of which was recorded in Europe and a number of other countries?

Is it true that the natural reservoir host of this pathogen has not yet been identified, although smallpox is called monkeypox? 

— This disease does not have a very high lethality and does not pose a serious threat to humans.

Still, it is a virus that primarily affects animals.

The virus, as a rule, is adapted for circulation among its permanent "hosts", and when it enters other organisms, it is far from always able to spread well.

The monkeypox virus, when it enters the human body, causes not the most dangerous symptoms, but, most importantly, it is hardly transmitted to other people.

Therefore, monkeypox has a very low rate of human-to-human transmission.

However, the virus may at some point mutate in such a way that it can effectively spread from person to person, as we have seen in the case of the coronavirus.

It is this possibility that causes the greatest concern.

Although the disease is called monkeypox, in reality, other animals can also get sick with it, and also act as carriers of this disease.

Basically, natural foci of monkeypox occur in Africa, but sometimes isolated cases of the disease are observed in Europe and America.

The mechanism and causes of these outbreaks have not yet been established.

I think that now, against the backdrop of general concern about the threat of new infections, monkeypox will be closely studied.

And in the end, we will still be able to establish the chain of spread of this infection and draw practical conclusions.

During the last major outbreak of monkeypox in the United States in 2003, scientists were able to trace the spread of the virus.

According to the main version, prairie dogs were then involved in the transmission of the infection - this is a species of wild rodents that are sometimes kept as pets.

They, in turn, got the virus from wild rodents brought from Africa to pet stores.

However, what exactly the chain of distribution of monkeypox has now led to the infection of dozens of people in Europe has not yet been established.

• prairie dogs

• Legion Media

• © JAN VAN DEN BEUKEL / Caters News

- Are there many such animals in Russia that can be intermediate hosts-amplifiers for monkeypox?

- In general, in epidemiological terms, those animals with which he constantly contacts are dangerous for humans: cats, dogs, farm animals.

Dogs are, in principle, capable of contracting monkeypox, so they may be an intermediate in the transmission of the virus to humans.

However, if this happens, then these will be isolated cases.

And even if a person becomes infected with this virus, he is unlikely to be able to infect someone else.

Therefore, it is not yet worth being afraid of really large outbreaks of monkeypox among people.

As for the current situation, it is doubtful that the virus recorded in Western Europe will spread to us.

Especially when you consider that now the flow of people moving between countries has been reduced.

- How does monkeypox manifest itself in case of infection with a human virus, what are the symptoms?

- As far as we know, in those countries where there are now cases of monkeypox among humans, there are no deaths.

So far, cases with a mild course have been recorded, we are talking about symptoms such as fever, weakness, headache - everything that usually accompanies a viral infection, as well as a skin rash.

A characteristic symptom of smallpox are pustules - pustules on the skin, which then break through, after their healing, small scars remain.

In the case of monkeypox, all symptoms are much milder.

Although the rash appears, it also does not have such serious consequences as in the case of smallpox.

- And can there be long-term side effects after suffering monkeypox?

- It depends on the state of health of the person, but in general, there should not be any serious complications.

This is an acute viral disease, after which a person fully recovers.

• Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Professor and Chief Researcher of the Institute of Molecular Biology of the Russian Academy of Sciences Pyotr Chumakov

• © Webber51 / Wikimedia Commons

“The smallpox vaccine is

“Yes, the smallpox vaccine also helps against monkeypox, that’s true.

In general, there are many smallpox viruses, each of them parasitizes on certain hosts.

Man acts as a host for smallpox, which is a very dangerous disease.

Fortunately, it was completely eradicated in the last century thanks to mass vaccination.

There is also cowpox virus, horsepox virus, etc. Vaccinating a person with the animalpox virus vaccine really helps against the human virus.

Supposedly, the first vaccine against smallpox, which was used by the British physician Edward Jenner in the 18th century, was the causative agent of cowpox.

And vice versa: the transferred smallpox or vaccination against smallpox can protect against smallpox in animals in the same way.

After 1980, people around the world stopped vaccinating people against smallpox, as the virus disappeared from the human population.

However, there is still a smallpox vaccine in warehouses - the fact is that at one time in different countries, smallpox was considered as a possible biological weapon.

And they stockpiled vaccines to counter it.

Therefore, if a really serious threat arises, it will be possible to quickly vaccinate the population.

Moreover, vaccination against smallpox is a very simple procedure: several scratches are applied to the forearm, into which the drug is rubbed.

A small abscess forms at this place, it quickly passes, and the person becomes resistant to all smallpox viruses.

-

“There are so many potential threats in Africa that a number of preventive vaccinations are usually given before traveling there.

I think that people who travel to such regions should protect themselves as much as possible, so, in principle, you can get vaccinated against smallpox if it is recommended by Rospotrebnadzor.

Vaccinating against smallpox on your own, on your own initiative, is unlikely to succeed, since now such a vaccination is not included in immunoprophylaxis schemes.

In addition, it is unlikely that the monkeypox virus can be considered a threat of the first plan.

• WHO building

• Legion Media

• © Richard Juilliart

-

It is difficult to say whether such cases have become more frequent in recent years.

The fact is that pathogens such as the bird flu virus are monitored especially closely.

While it can be transmitted from birds to humans, it cannot spread to humans.

If he learns to do this, a very serious pandemic should be expected, the mortality rate will be about 50%, this is a really terrible prospect.

Anxiety regarding new epidemiological threats remains, since the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus has not yet been precisely established.

There are even suspicions that it may have a partly artificial origin.

Therefore, now in the event of the appearance of any exotic viruses, they must be closely monitored, not completely excluding not only natural, but also artificial causes of the outbreak.