Six things you need to know about Alaskapox virus

The first death from Alaskapox virus marks a significant development since its discovery in 2015, but human-to-human transmission has not yet been observed. An elderly man has died after contracting a type of Orthopoxvirus that was first discovered in 2015 – the seventh human case of so-called Alaskapox virus so far. Thought to be circulating in small mammals and related to the viruses that cause smallpox, mpox and cowpox, its detection outside Alaska’s Interior region has prompted expanded testing for the virus in small mammals across the US state. Here’s what we know about this virus so far. 1. The first human case was in 2015 On 29 July 2015, a middle-aged woman presented to a walk-in clinic in Fairbanks, central Alaska, with a suspected spider bite on her right shoulder. In addition to a skin ulcer measuring 1cm in diameter and two smaller lesions nearby, the woman had been feeling tired and...