logo Agência Brasil
Health

Brazil’s government invests in monkeypox research

Studies should be concluded in 24 months
Agência Brasil
Published on 20/09/2022 - 14:31
Brasília
03_A varíola dos macacos é transmitida pelo vírus monkeypox, que pertence ao gênero orthopoxvirus
© Débora F. Barreto-Vieira/IOC/Fiocruz

Brazil’s Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation stated it will invest BRL 3 million in scientific research on monkeypox. The funding was released by the country’s national research council CNPq.

Studies must be concluded within 24 months and should investigate vaccines, people’s immune status, viral antigen tests for serology, strains circulating in Brazil, and virus behavior in both wild animals and pets.

The work will be done by scientists from federal universities making up CâmaraPOX, an advisory group created to fight the virus.

Monkeypox is a disease caused by a virus and transmitted by close or intimate contact with an infected person with skin lesions.

Clinical pictures are usually mild and require care and observation of the lesions. The highest risk of deterioration occurs in immunosuppressed people with HIV/AIDS, leukemia, lymphoma, metastasis, transplant patients, people with autoimmune diseases, pregnant and nursing women, and children under eight years old.