Skip to main content

#Mpox Multi-country external #situation #report no. 63, published 24 February 2026 (#WHO, summary)

Image
By G.M.

 


Highlights   

• Transmission of mpox continues in sexual networks, affecting both women and men, and in some historically endemic areas. 

- All clades of monkeypox virus (MPXV) continue to circulate. 

- Unless mpox outbreaks are rapidly contained and human-to-human transmission is interrupted, there is a risk of sustained community transmission. 

• In January 2026, 50 countries across all WHO regions reported a total of 1334 new confirmed mpox cases, including three deaths (case fatality ratio [CFR] 0.2%). 

- Of these cases, 66% were reported in the African Region. 

• Four regions observed a decline in confirmed cases in January, compared to December 2025, while the European Region reported an increase in confirmed cases.

• Twenty countries in Africa reported active transmission of mpox in the last six weeks (5 January – 15 February 2026), with 1142 confirmed cases, including four deaths (CFR 0.4%). 

- Countries reporting the highest number of cases in this period are the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guinea, Madagascar, Liberia and Ghana. 

• One country, Comoros, and one territory, La Réunion (Overseas Department of France), have reported mpox due to clade Ib MPXV for the first time.   

• Outside Africa, reports of community transmission of clade Ib MPXV continue in France, Portugal and Spain, including in sexual networks of men who have sex with men.  

• WHO conducted a global mpox rapid risk assessment in February 2026; the overall global public health risk associated with the mpox multi-country outbreak was assessed as moderate. 

• India has reported a case of mpox with the clade Ib /IIb recombinant MPXV. 

- The strain sequenced is closely related to the first clade Ib / IIb recombinant strain reported by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in December 2025. 

- As both cases are travel-related, these case reports suggest wider transmission of the recombinant strain, implicating four countries in three WHO regions. 

(...)

Source: 


Link: https://www.who.int/publications/m/item/multi-country-outbreak-of-mpox--external-situation-report--63---24-february-2026

____

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

#Neuroinvasive #Oropouche virus in a patient with #HIV from extra-Amazonian #Brazil

By G.M.
{Excerpt} A novel reassortant Oropouche virus (OROV) lineage (with medium [M], large [L], and small [S] RNA segments : M1L2S2) has driven Brazil's largest and most geographically widespread OROV epidemic , expanding beyond the endemic Amazon basin to establish local transmission across multiple Brazilian states and other previously unaffected Latin American countries . The rapid spread of this lineage underscores its evolutionary potential and reinforces its significance as a public health threat .1 Similar to chikungunya and Zika viruses, expanding arboviruses can exhibit unexpected clinical and epidemiological shifts , including vertical transmissions , neuroinvasive effects, and potentially fatal outcomes.2–4 Although OROV typically causes self-limited febrile illness, accumulating clinical and experimental evidence suggests neurotropic potential .5 This Correspondence describes the first confirmed case of neuroinvasive OROV infection caused by the emergent M1L2S2 lineage in ext...
Post a Comment
Read more »

No evidence of immune #exhaustion after repeated #SARS-CoV-2 #vaccination in vulnerable and healthy populations

By G.M.
Abstract Frequent SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in vulnerable populations has raised concerns that this may contribute to T cell exhaustion , which could negatively affect the quality of immune protection. Herein, we examined the impact of repeated SARS-CoV-2 vaccination on T cell phenotypic and functional exhaustion in frail older adults in long-term care (n = 23), individuals on immunosuppressive drugs (n = 10), and healthy adults (n = 43), in Canada . Spike-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cell levels did not decline in any cohort following repeated SARS-CoV-2 vaccination, nor did the expression of exhaustion markers on spike-specific or total T cells increase. T cell production of multiple cytokines (i.e. polyfunctionality) in response to the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 did not decline in any cohort following repeated vaccination. None of the cohorts displayed elevated levels of terminally differentiated T cells following multiple SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations. Thus, repeated SARS-CoV-2 vaccination was...
Post a Comment
Read more »

Chimeric #hemagglutinin and #M2 #mRNA #vaccine for broad #influenza subtype protection

By G.M.
Abstract Since multiple and unpredicted influenza viruses cause seasonal epidemics and even high-risk pandemics , developing a universal influenza vaccine is essential to provide broad protection against various influenza subtypes. Combined with the mRNA lipid nanoparticle-encapsulated (mRNA-LNP) vaccine platform and chimeric immunogen strategy , we developed a novel cocktail mRNA vaccine encoding chimeric HAs (cH5/1-BV, cH7/3) and intact M2 (termed Fluaxe), which confers broad protection against major circulating IAVs and IBVs , as well as highly pathogenic avian influenza . Two-dose intramuscular immunization of Fluaxe in mice elicited cross-reactive neutralizing antibodies , T cell responses, and long-lived immunity, resulting in robust protection against multiple lethal influenza virus infections and severe acute lung injuries . In particular, intramuscular administration stimulated systemic immunity together with a prominent lung tropism of memory cells . Moreover, Fluaxe immuniza...
Post a Comment
Read more »