Mpox, formerly Monkeypox, circulated for 5 years before global explosion in 2022: Study

Scientists have discovered that the disease formerly known as monkeypox, now renamed mpox, had been circulating in humans for over five years before the global outbreak in 2022. The virus acquired an unexpectedly high number of mutations, indicating that the human immune system played a crucial role in driving its evolution and transition to sustained human-to-human transmission. Although the outbreak has declined due to public health measures and vaccination campaigns, other virus lineages from Nigeria are still being reported in several countries.