Monkeypox (Mpox) virus isolation and ultrastructural characterisation from a Brazilian human sample case.

BACKGROUND: According to the last 2023 Monkeypox (Mpox) Outbreak Global Map from the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 100 countries with no Mpox infection report cases. Brazil stands out in this group and is the second country with the highest number of cases in the last outbreak.

OBJECTIVE: To contribute to knowledge of the virus infection effects in a cellular model, which is important for diagnosis infections not yet included in a provider´s differential diagnosis and for developing viral inhibition strategies.

METHODS: We describe a virus isolation protocol for a human clinical sample from a patient from Brazil, the viral growth in a cell model through plaque forming units (PFU) assay, reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM).

FINDINGS: We follow the viral isolation in Vero cell culture from a Mpox positive clinically diagnosed sample and show the infection effects on cellular structures using a TEM.

MAIN CONCLUSIONS: Understanding the impact of viral growth on cellular structures and its replication kinetics may offer better strategies for the development of new drugs with antiviral properties.