A retrospective genomic characterisation of the 2022 mpox outbreak in Belgium, and in vitro assessment of three antiviral compoundsResearch in context

Summary: Background: Since the beginning of May 2022, cases of mpox have been reported in several European and American countries where the disease is nonendemic. We performed a retrospective genomic characterisation of the 2022 mpox outbreak in Belgium, and assessed the in vitro sensitivity of thr...

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Main Authors: Tony Wawina-Bokalanga, Bert Vanmechelen, Anne-Sophie Logist, Mandy Bloemen, Lies Laenen, Sébastien Bontems, Marie-Pierre Hayette, Cécile Meex, Christelle Meuris, Catherine Orban, Emmanuel André, Robert Snoeck, Guy Baele, Samuel L. Hong, Graciela Andrei, Piet Maes
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Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2024-12-01
Series:EBioMedicine
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352396424005243
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author Tony Wawina-Bokalanga
Bert Vanmechelen
Anne-Sophie Logist
Mandy Bloemen
Lies Laenen
Sébastien Bontems
Marie-Pierre Hayette
Cécile Meex
Christelle Meuris
Catherine Orban
Emmanuel André
Robert Snoeck
Guy Baele
Samuel L. Hong
Graciela Andrei
Piet Maes
author_facet Tony Wawina-Bokalanga
Bert Vanmechelen
Anne-Sophie Logist
Mandy Bloemen
Lies Laenen
Sébastien Bontems
Marie-Pierre Hayette
Cécile Meex
Christelle Meuris
Catherine Orban
Emmanuel André
Robert Snoeck
Guy Baele
Samuel L. Hong
Graciela Andrei
Piet Maes
author_sort Tony Wawina-Bokalanga
collection DOAJ
description Summary: Background: Since the beginning of May 2022, cases of mpox have been reported in several European and American countries where the disease is nonendemic. We performed a retrospective genomic characterisation of the 2022 mpox outbreak in Belgium, and assessed the in vitro sensitivity of three antiviral compounds to a monkeypox virus (MPXV) strain from the 2022 outbreak. Methods: We sequenced the complete genomes of MPXV isolated from skin-, throat-, anorectal- and genital swab samples using the Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) GridION. We subsequently analysed high-quality complete MPXV genomes and conducted a genomic analysis of MPXV complete genomes from this study with all other complete MPXV genomes available on GISAID up to October 28th, 2022. The in vitro activity of tecovirimat, brincidofovir, and cidofovir was also tested in human and monkey cell lines. Findings: We produced 248 complete MPXV genomes. Phylogenetic analysis of the complete MPXV genomes revealed that they all belong to MPXV Clade IIb B.1. Surprisingly, through phylogeographic analysis we identified a minimum number of 79 introduction events into Belgium, along with sustained local transmission. We also demonstrated the superior in vitro efficacy and selectivity of tecovirimat to the 2022 MPXV clinical strain. Interpretation: The number of sequences provides sufficient information about the MPXV lineages that were circulating in Belgium. The 2022 mpox outbreak, in Belgium, was mainly characterised by many introduction events that were promptly contained and resulted in limited human-to-human transmission of MPXV. The in vitro efficacy of antivirals against a 2022 MPXV Belgian strain highlights the potent activity and specificity of tecovirimat and its ability to prevent the formation of the extracellular enveloped viruses. Funding: None.
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spelling doaj-art-948f643ddbc84017bb993beda436779a2025-08-20T02:51:45ZengElsevierEBioMedicine2352-39642024-12-0111010548810.1016/j.ebiom.2024.105488A retrospective genomic characterisation of the 2022 mpox outbreak in Belgium, and in vitro assessment of three antiviral compoundsResearch in contextTony Wawina-Bokalanga0Bert Vanmechelen1Anne-Sophie Logist2Mandy Bloemen3Lies Laenen4Sébastien Bontems5Marie-Pierre Hayette6Cécile Meex7Christelle Meuris8Catherine Orban9Emmanuel André10Robert Snoeck11Guy Baele12Samuel L. Hong13Graciela Andrei14Piet Maes15Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, KU Leuven, Rega Institute, Laboratory of Clinical and Epidemiological Virology, 3000, Leuven, Belgium; Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB), Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo; Département de Biologie Médicale, Service de Microbiologie, Cliniques Universitaires de Kinshasa, Université de Kinshasa, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo; Corresponding author. Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, KU Leuven, Rega Institute, Laboratory of Clinical and Epidemiological Virology, 3000, Leuven, Belgium.Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, KU Leuven, Rega Institute, Laboratory of Clinical and Epidemiological Virology, 3000, Leuven, BelgiumDepartment of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, KU Leuven, Rega Institute, Laboratory of Clinical and Epidemiological Virology, 3000, Leuven, BelgiumDepartment of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, KU Leuven, Rega Institute, Laboratory of Clinical and Epidemiological Virology, 3000, Leuven, BelgiumDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, University Hospitals Leuven, 3000, Leuven, Belgium; Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, KU Leuven, Laboratory of Clinical Microbiology, 3000, Leuven, BelgiumDepartment of Clinical Microbiology, University Hospital of Liege, 4000, Liege, BelgiumDepartment of Clinical Microbiology, University Hospital of Liege, 4000, Liege, BelgiumDepartment of Clinical Microbiology, University Hospital of Liege, 4000, Liege, BelgiumDepartment of Infectious Diseases and General Internal Medicine, University Hospital of Liege, 4000, Liege, BelgiumDepartment of Infectious Diseases and General Internal Medicine, University Hospital of Liege, 4000, Liege, BelgiumDepartment of Laboratory Medicine, University Hospitals Leuven, 3000, Leuven, Belgium; Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, KU Leuven, Laboratory of Clinical Microbiology, 3000, Leuven, BelgiumDepartment of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, KU Leuven, Rega Institute, Laboratory of Virology and Chemotherapy, 3000, Leuven, BelgiumDepartment of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, KU Leuven, Rega Institute, Laboratory of Clinical and Epidemiological Virology, 3000, Leuven, BelgiumDepartment of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, KU Leuven, Rega Institute, Laboratory of Clinical and Epidemiological Virology, 3000, Leuven, BelgiumDepartment of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, KU Leuven, Rega Institute, Laboratory of Virology and Chemotherapy, 3000, Leuven, BelgiumDepartment of Microbiology, Immunology and Transplantation, KU Leuven, Rega Institute, Laboratory of Clinical and Epidemiological Virology, 3000, Leuven, Belgium; Corresponding author.Summary: Background: Since the beginning of May 2022, cases of mpox have been reported in several European and American countries where the disease is nonendemic. We performed a retrospective genomic characterisation of the 2022 mpox outbreak in Belgium, and assessed the in vitro sensitivity of three antiviral compounds to a monkeypox virus (MPXV) strain from the 2022 outbreak. Methods: We sequenced the complete genomes of MPXV isolated from skin-, throat-, anorectal- and genital swab samples using the Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) GridION. We subsequently analysed high-quality complete MPXV genomes and conducted a genomic analysis of MPXV complete genomes from this study with all other complete MPXV genomes available on GISAID up to October 28th, 2022. The in vitro activity of tecovirimat, brincidofovir, and cidofovir was also tested in human and monkey cell lines. Findings: We produced 248 complete MPXV genomes. Phylogenetic analysis of the complete MPXV genomes revealed that they all belong to MPXV Clade IIb B.1. Surprisingly, through phylogeographic analysis we identified a minimum number of 79 introduction events into Belgium, along with sustained local transmission. We also demonstrated the superior in vitro efficacy and selectivity of tecovirimat to the 2022 MPXV clinical strain. Interpretation: The number of sequences provides sufficient information about the MPXV lineages that were circulating in Belgium. The 2022 mpox outbreak, in Belgium, was mainly characterised by many introduction events that were promptly contained and resulted in limited human-to-human transmission of MPXV. The in vitro efficacy of antivirals against a 2022 MPXV Belgian strain highlights the potent activity and specificity of tecovirimat and its ability to prevent the formation of the extracellular enveloped viruses. Funding: None.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352396424005243Monkeypox virusmpoxWhole-genome sequencingGenomic analysisTecovirimatAntivirals
spellingShingle Tony Wawina-Bokalanga
Bert Vanmechelen
Anne-Sophie Logist
Mandy Bloemen
Lies Laenen
Sébastien Bontems
Marie-Pierre Hayette
Cécile Meex
Christelle Meuris
Catherine Orban
Emmanuel André
Robert Snoeck
Guy Baele
Samuel L. Hong
Graciela Andrei
Piet Maes
A retrospective genomic characterisation of the 2022 mpox outbreak in Belgium, and in vitro assessment of three antiviral compoundsResearch in context
EBioMedicine
Monkeypox virus
mpox
Whole-genome sequencing
Genomic analysis
Tecovirimat
Antivirals
title A retrospective genomic characterisation of the 2022 mpox outbreak in Belgium, and in vitro assessment of three antiviral compoundsResearch in context
title_full A retrospective genomic characterisation of the 2022 mpox outbreak in Belgium, and in vitro assessment of three antiviral compoundsResearch in context
title_fullStr A retrospective genomic characterisation of the 2022 mpox outbreak in Belgium, and in vitro assessment of three antiviral compoundsResearch in context
title_full_unstemmed A retrospective genomic characterisation of the 2022 mpox outbreak in Belgium, and in vitro assessment of three antiviral compoundsResearch in context
title_short A retrospective genomic characterisation of the 2022 mpox outbreak in Belgium, and in vitro assessment of three antiviral compoundsResearch in context
title_sort retrospective genomic characterisation of the 2022 mpox outbreak in belgium and in vitro assessment of three antiviral compoundsresearch in context
topic Monkeypox virus
mpox
Whole-genome sequencing
Genomic analysis
Tecovirimat
Antivirals
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352396424005243
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