MPOX TRACKER

In an unprecedented scientific breakthrough, researchers from the Helmholtz Institute have traced a deadly mpox outbreak in Ivory Coast’s Taï National Park to a fire-footed rope squirrel, offering the clearest evidence yet of animal-to-primate transmission in the wild. The outbreak began in early 2023 when a baby sooty mangabey developed mpox symptoms and died shortly thereafter. Over the following months, a third of its troop became infected, with four fatalities. Using longitudinal wildlife surveillance and genetic sequencing, scientists identified a virus match between infected monkeys and a squirrel carcass found nearby—pinpointing a likely origin of transmission.

What makes this discovery especially significant is that researchers were already monitoring this monkey population, enabling them to capture real-time data rarely available in zoonotic outbreak investigations. Fecal samples from the baby monkey’s mother—who had consumed the squirrel—contained viral DNA, suggesting she was the asymptomatic index case. Video footage also showed other monkeys consuming rope squirrels, reinforcing the behavioral link.

This is the first confirmed transmission of mpox from a rodent to wild primates and bolsters long-standing suspicions that rope squirrels may be reservoir hosts for the monkeypox virus. Such hosts can harbor and transmit pathogens without becoming ill themselves, potentially seeding outbreaks in humans or other species. While researchers still need to determine if these squirrels can carry the virus asymptomatically and shed it over time, the discovery raises serious implications for public health, especially in communities where these rodents are hunted for food.

As zoonotic diseases like mpox increasingly threaten global health, this study is a crucial reminder of the importance of ecological surveillance, cross-disciplinary research, and early intervention. It also highlights the urgent need to monitor human-animal interactions in hotspot regions to prevent the next spillover event.