Sir —Nearly 40 years after humans won over smallpox, the current outbreak of monkeypox in parts of the world is a matter of concern. The WHO has speculated that its spread is less likely to take the form of a pandemic. Scientists are struggling to de-clutter its sudden spread. There is no doubt that the outbreak is abrupt but it can also be seen as a continuation of the long tradition of human virus interaction. Since monkeypox is known to spread from rodents found in central and western African forests, zoonotic spillover cannot be ruled out as a causal factor.
But scientists are finding it hard to explain is why the disease is spreading across the globe having wide-ranging regional variations. Interestingly, the genome sequencing of monkeypox samples from countries including Belgium, France, Germany, Portugal and the US has shown that these samples resemble the strain found in Western Africa — which is less lethal than the Central African strain. Essentially, there seems to be no concrete answer to the monkeypox conundrum as of now. While waiting for health expert bodies to come up with reliable findings to eliminate uncertainties, we should focus on certainties to ensure safety for all.