Berlin.
Monkeypox isn’t particularly active right now. But smallpox viruses should not be underestimated, warns virologist Christian Drosten.
The Berlin virologist Christian Drosten warns of an increasing threat from the monkeypox virus: the pathogen is currently not particularly active in Germany. The monkeypox virus is not a harmless virus. “We know from history that other smallpoxvirus infections started off mildly and then intensified as they adapted to humans,” he said drosten this editorial office. “You have to fear that with the monkeypox virus.”
Monkeypox: In the spring of 2022, there were thousands of cases worldwide
A year ago, there was a worldwide outbreak of monkeypox. That the situation is currently in Deutschland The fact that the situation is largely calm is also due to “the fact that in the community in which most of the cases occurred, i.e. among men who have sex with other men, there has been a great awareness of the danger,” says Drosten. Background: One year after the outbreak, WHO warns of caution
Facts about Christian Drosten
- Birth date: 12. June 1972
- Position: Head of Virology at the Berlin Charité
- Theme: Corona-pandemics
Drosten’s colleague Beate Kampmann, director of the Institute for International Health at the Berlin Charité, warns: Elsewhere in the world there are still high numbers of cases. In regions of Africa that is Affenpocken-Virus known for a long time and not limited to a specific community, but rather endemic. “Interestingly, no one was interested in this until it broke out in Europe. We experienced similar things with Ebola,” says Kampmann. Researchers are also observing a risky development in the Mers virus. Virologist Drosten considers Mers to be a pathogen that could trigger the next global pandemic.
Also interesting: Climate change: Christian Drosten warns of West Nile virus
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