Will monkeypox be the next smallpox?
Tuesday, September 28, 2010 - 14:07
in Biology & Nature
Most vertebrate animal species have some sort of poxvirus capable of causing severe illness. These ancient pathogens have evolved within and among vertebrates since the dawn of life. In one of public health's greatest triumphs, our own orthopox virus -- smallpox, or Variola -- was eradicated by 1980. Because chickenpox isn't a true poxvirus, humans don't have a poxvirus of their own anymore.