WHO names Monkeypox as clades I, IIa and IIb to avoid causing any offence

The World Health Organization (WHO) has given new names to monkeypox virus strains that are currently in circulation. The WHO stated in a statement that this is done to prevent causing any cultural or social offense.

The global health agency labeled Monkeypox variations as Clades I, IIa, and IIb. Experts in pox virology, evolutionary biology, and representatives of research institutes from around the world assessed the phylogeny and nomenclature of known and new monkeypox virus variations or clades.

"Newly identified viruses, related diseases and virus variants are given names to avoid causing offence to any cultural, social, national, regional, professional, or ethnic groups, and minimize the negative impact on trade, travel, tourism, or animal welfare," said WHO said in a statement.

"A group of global experts convened by WHO has agreed on new names for monkeypox virus variants, as part of ongoing efforts to align the names of the monkeypox disease, virus and variants--or clades--with current best practices. The experts agreed to name the clades using Roman numerals," said a statement issued by WHO.

The monkeypox virus was named upon its first discovery in 1958, before current best practices in naming diseases and viruses were adopted.

The proper naming structure will be represented by a Roman numeral for the clade and a lower-case alphanumeric character for the subclades. Thus, the new naming convention comprises Clade I, Clade IIa and Clade IIb, with the latter referring primarily to the group of variants largely circulating in the 2022 global outbreak. The naming of lineages will be as proposed by scientists as the outbreak evolves. Experts will be reconvened as needed.

The new names for the clades will go into effect immediately while work continues on the disease and virus names.

Meanwhile, the fifth case of monkeypox has been detected in Delhi, according to Dr. Suresh Kumar, medical director of Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan Hospital, who made the announcement on Saturday. A 22-year-old woman's sample tested positive on Friday, according to Dr. Kumar, and she is presently being examined in the hospital.

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