FRANKFURT AM MAIN — Researchers at Goethe University and Universitätsmedizin Frankfurt found that seminal fluid facilitates the uptake of monkeypox virus into human cells. The study identifies a biological mechanism involving naturally occurring protein fragments in seminal fluid that form fibers enhancing viral attachment to host tissue.

The research team infected connective tissue cells, known as fibroblasts, and epidermal cells, known as keratinocytes, with monkeypox viruses to investigate infection mechanisms. Mixing monkeypox viruses with seminal fluid promoted the uptake of the pathogen into fibroblasts and keratinocytes.

An experimental compound was found to disrupt infection-promoting structures and directly inhibit the monkeypox virus. Available antiviral drugs remain effective against monkeypox virus even in the presence of seminal fluid.

"In the long term, this could open up new approaches to prevention," Professor Denisa Bojkova said. The findings suggest potential avenues for interrupting transmission through targeted interventions.

Monkeypox transmission requires close physical contact, such as hugging or sexual contact. Infected individuals become contagious with the onset of the first symptoms.

Mpox symptoms include fever, headache, joint pain, and characteristic pox-like lesions on the skin or mucous membranes. New mpox cases continue to occur in Germany at a low level.

Timeline

A monkeypox virus variant emerged in 2023 that infected approximately 100,000 people in several African countries during the first half of 2024. The 2023 monkeypox virus variant killed more than 200 people, primarily children and immunocompromised individuals, in the first half of 2024.

What's New

Goethe University is university in Frankfurt, Germany. This institutional context situates the research within a specific academic and geographic framework.

Why It Matters

The identification of seminal fluid as a facilitator of viral uptake clarifies a specific mechanism of transmission for monkeypox. By demonstrating how protein fragments form fibers that aid attachment, the study provides a biological explanation for transmission efficiency during close physical contact.

The discovery of an experimental compound that disrupts these infection-promoting structures offers a potential target for future medical interventions. With available antiviral drugs remaining effective despite the presence of seminal fluid, the research supports current treatment protocols while pointing toward additional preventive strategies.