The information was released in a statement by the Instituto Nacional de Saúde Doutor Ricardo Jorge (INSA), stating that a team of researchers “was the first to identify the genetic sequence of the Monkeypox virus”, circulating in several countries, including Portugal.

According to INSA, the genetic sequencing of the virus, which is endemic in West and Central Africa, "may be essential to understand the origin of the outbreak and the causes for the rapid spread of the disease", which is rare.