Mpox Clade IIb Virus Introduction into Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, July 2025

Tony Wawina-Bokalanga; Eddy Kinganda-Lusamaki; Christian Ngandu; Prince Akil-Bandali; Jeremie Kundey-Mafu; Nadege Ngombe; Laurens Liesenborghs; Princesse Paku-Tshambu; Lorenzo Subissi; Pauline-Chloe Muswamba-Kayembe; Samy Tessi-Mvutukulu; Jacques Santini-Mafuta; Gradi Luakanda-Ndelemo; Olga Ntumba-Tshitenge; Mory Keita; Israel Cinkobu-Bualukengu; Emmanuel Lokilo-Lofiko; Fiston Cikaya-Kankolongo; Sikoti Josaphat; Cris Kacita; Adelar Lofungola; Judith Tete-Sitra; Raphael Lumembe-Numbi; Elzedek Mabika-Bope; Adrienne Amuri-Aziza; Daan Jansen; Jean-Claude Makangara-Cigolo; Jeanine Nkakulu; Yap Boum; Ngashi Ngongo; Sofonias Tessema; Nick Loman; Aine O'toole; Anne W. Rimoin; Pierre Akilimali; Nicole A. Hoff; Jason Kindrachuk; Steve Ahuka-Mundeke; Martine Peeters; Dieudonne Mwamba; Koen Vercauteren; Andrew Rambaut; Jean-Jacques Muyembe-Tamfum; Placide Mbala-Kingebeni

doi:10.3390/v18010087

Mpox Clade IIb Virus Introduction into Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, July 2025

Tony Wawina-Bokalanga
, Eddy Kinganda-Lusamaki
, Christian Ngandu
, Prince Akil-Bandali
, Jeremie Kundey-Mafu
, Nadege Ngombe
, Laurens Liesenborghs
, Princesse Paku-Tshambu
, Lorenzo Subissi
, Pauline-Chloe Muswamba-Kayembe
, Samy Tessi-Mvutukulu
, Jacques Santini-Mafuta
, Gradi Luakanda-Ndelemo
, Olga Ntumba-Tshitenge
, Mory Keita
, Israel Cinkobu-Bualukengu
, Emmanuel Lokilo-Lofiko
, Fiston Cikaya-Kankolongo
, Sikoti Josaphat
, Cris Kacita

Adelar Lofungola, Judith Tete-Sitra, Raphael Lumembe-Numbi, Elzedek Mabika-Bope, Adrienne Amuri-Aziza, Daan Jansen, Jean-Claude Makangara-Cigolo, Jeanine Nkakulu, Yap Boum, Ngashi Ngongo, Sofonias Tessema, Nick Loman, Aine O'toole, Anne W. Rimoin, Pierre Akilimali, Nicole A. Hoff, Jason Kindrachuk, Steve Ahuka-Mundeke, Martine Peeters, Dieudonne Mwamba, Koen Vercauteren, Andrew Rambaut, Jean-Jacques Muyembe-Tamfum, Placide Mbala-Kingebeni

Research output: Contribution to journal › A1: Peer-reviewed journal articles › peer-review

Abstract

Clade I mpox virus (MPXV) is endemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Recent studies have described the changing epidemiology of mpox in the country, which has been mainly characterized by the emergence of new MPXV lineages, Clade Ib/sh2023 and Ia/sh2024, associated with sustained human-to-human transmission. Both Clade Ib/sh2023 and Ia/sh2024 are co-circulating in Kinshasa, the capital city of the DRC. Here, we report the first two cases of Clade IIb/sh2017 identified in Kinshasa, DRC, imported from West Africa and locally transmitted. Clinical specimens were collected and tested by PCR. We performed whole genome sequencing using a tiled-amplicon sequencing approach with Clade IIb MPXV-specific primers. The phylogenetic tree shows that Kinshasa Clade IIb MPXV is assigned to Clade IIb/sh2017 within the newly designated lineage G.1, as identified in January 2025 in Sierra-Leone.

Original language	English
Article number	87
Journal	Viruses-Basel
Volume	18
Issue number	1
Number of pages	7
ISSN	1999-4915
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.3390/v18010087
Publication status	Published - 8-Jan-2026

Keywords

Clade II
Drc
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Mpxv
Case investigations
Genome sequencing
Mpox
Mpox virus
Viruses
Democratic Republic of the Congo/epidemiology
Genome, Viral
Humans
Orthopoxvirus/genetics
Male
Phylogeny
Mpox, Monkeypox/virology
Whole Genome Sequencing
Female
Adult

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10.3390/v18010087Licence: CC BY

Cite this

Wawina-Bokalanga, T., Kinganda-Lusamaki, E., Ngandu, C., Akil-Bandali, P., Kundey-Mafu, J., Ngombe, N., Liesenborghs, L., Paku-Tshambu, P., Subissi, L., Muswamba-Kayembe, P.-C., Tessi-Mvutukulu, S., Santini-Mafuta, J., Luakanda-Ndelemo, G., Ntumba-Tshitenge, O., Keita, M., Cinkobu-Bualukengu, I., Lokilo-Lofiko, E., Cikaya-Kankolongo, F., Josaphat, S., ... Mbala-Kingebeni, P. (2026). Mpox Clade IIb Virus Introduction into Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, July 2025. Viruses-Basel, 18(1), Article 87. https://doi.org/10.3390/v18010087

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title = "Mpox Clade IIb Virus Introduction into Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, July 2025",

abstract = "Clade I mpox virus (MPXV) is endemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Recent studies have described the changing epidemiology of mpox in the country, which has been mainly characterized by the emergence of new MPXV lineages, Clade Ib/sh2023 and Ia/sh2024, associated with sustained human-to-human transmission. Both Clade Ib/sh2023 and Ia/sh2024 are co-circulating in Kinshasa, the capital city of the DRC. Here, we report the first two cases of Clade IIb/sh2017 identified in Kinshasa, DRC, imported from West Africa and locally transmitted. Clinical specimens were collected and tested by PCR. We performed whole genome sequencing using a tiled-amplicon sequencing approach with Clade IIb MPXV-specific primers. The phylogenetic tree shows that Kinshasa Clade IIb MPXV is assigned to Clade IIb/sh2017 within the newly designated lineage G.1, as identified in January 2025 in Sierra-Leone.",

keywords = "Clade II, Drc, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mpxv, Case investigations, Genome sequencing, Mpox, Mpox virus, Viruses, Democratic Republic of the Congo/epidemiology, Genome, Viral, Humans, Orthopoxvirus/genetics, Male, Phylogeny, Mpox, Monkeypox/virology, Whole Genome Sequencing, Female, Adult",

author = "Tony Wawina-Bokalanga and Eddy Kinganda-Lusamaki and Christian Ngandu and Prince Akil-Bandali and Jeremie Kundey-Mafu and Nadege Ngombe and Laurens Liesenborghs and Princesse Paku-Tshambu and Lorenzo Subissi and Pauline-Chloe Muswamba-Kayembe and Samy Tessi-Mvutukulu and Jacques Santini-Mafuta and Gradi Luakanda-Ndelemo and Olga Ntumba-Tshitenge and Mory Keita and Israel Cinkobu-Bualukengu and Emmanuel Lokilo-Lofiko and Fiston Cikaya-Kankolongo and Sikoti Josaphat and Cris Kacita and Adelar Lofungola and Judith Tete-Sitra and Raphael Lumembe-Numbi and Elzedek Mabika-Bope and Adrienne Amuri-Aziza and Daan Jansen and Jean-Claude Makangara-Cigolo and Jeanine Nkakulu and Yap Boum and Ngashi Ngongo and Sofonias Tessema and Nick Loman and Aine O'toole and Rimoin, \{Anne W.\} and Pierre Akilimali and Hoff, \{Nicole A.\} and Jason Kindrachuk and Steve Ahuka-Mundeke and Martine Peeters and Dieudonne Mwamba and Koen Vercauteren and Andrew Rambaut and Jean-Jacques Muyembe-Tamfum and Placide Mbala-Kingebeni",

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Wawina-Bokalanga, T, Kinganda-Lusamaki, E, Ngandu, C, Akil-Bandali, P, Kundey-Mafu, J, Ngombe, N, Liesenborghs, L, Paku-Tshambu, P, Subissi, L, Muswamba-Kayembe, P-C, Tessi-Mvutukulu, S, Santini-Mafuta, J, Luakanda-Ndelemo, G, Ntumba-Tshitenge, O, Keita, M, Cinkobu-Bualukengu, I, Lokilo-Lofiko, E, Cikaya-Kankolongo, F, Josaphat, S, Kacita, C, Lofungola, A, Tete-Sitra, J, Lumembe-Numbi, R, Mabika-Bope, E, Amuri-Aziza, A, Jansen, D, Makangara-Cigolo, J-C, Nkakulu, J, Boum, Y, Ngongo, N, Tessema, S, Loman, N, O'toole, A, Rimoin, AW, Akilimali, P, Hoff, NA, Kindrachuk, J, Ahuka-Mundeke, S, Peeters, M, Mwamba, D, Vercauteren, K, Rambaut, A, Muyembe-Tamfum, J-J & Mbala-Kingebeni, P 2026, 'Mpox Clade IIb Virus Introduction into Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, July 2025', Viruses-Basel, vol. 18, no. 1, 87. https://doi.org/10.3390/v18010087

TY - JOUR

T1 - Mpox Clade IIb Virus Introduction into Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, July 2025

AU - Wawina-Bokalanga, Tony

AU - Kinganda-Lusamaki, Eddy

AU - Ngandu, Christian

AU - Akil-Bandali, Prince

AU - Kundey-Mafu, Jeremie

AU - Ngombe, Nadege

AU - Liesenborghs, Laurens

AU - Paku-Tshambu, Princesse

AU - Subissi, Lorenzo

AU - Muswamba-Kayembe, Pauline-Chloe

AU - Tessi-Mvutukulu, Samy

AU - Santini-Mafuta, Jacques

AU - Luakanda-Ndelemo, Gradi

AU - Ntumba-Tshitenge, Olga

AU - Keita, Mory

AU - Cinkobu-Bualukengu, Israel

AU - Lokilo-Lofiko, Emmanuel

AU - Cikaya-Kankolongo, Fiston

AU - Josaphat, Sikoti

AU - Kacita, Cris

AU - Lofungola, Adelar

AU - Tete-Sitra, Judith

AU - Lumembe-Numbi, Raphael

AU - Mabika-Bope, Elzedek

AU - Amuri-Aziza, Adrienne

AU - Jansen, Daan

AU - Makangara-Cigolo, Jean-Claude

AU - Nkakulu, Jeanine

AU - Boum, Yap

AU - Ngongo, Ngashi

AU - Tessema, Sofonias

AU - Loman, Nick

AU - O'toole, Aine

AU - Rimoin, Anne W.

AU - Akilimali, Pierre

AU - Hoff, Nicole A.

AU - Kindrachuk, Jason

AU - Ahuka-Mundeke, Steve

AU - Peeters, Martine

AU - Mwamba, Dieudonne

AU - Vercauteren, Koen

AU - Rambaut, Andrew

AU - Muyembe-Tamfum, Jean-Jacques

AU - Mbala-Kingebeni, Placide

N1 - FTX: CC BY

PY - 2026/1/8

Y1 - 2026/1/8

N2 - Clade I mpox virus (MPXV) is endemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Recent studies have described the changing epidemiology of mpox in the country, which has been mainly characterized by the emergence of new MPXV lineages, Clade Ib/sh2023 and Ia/sh2024, associated with sustained human-to-human transmission. Both Clade Ib/sh2023 and Ia/sh2024 are co-circulating in Kinshasa, the capital city of the DRC. Here, we report the first two cases of Clade IIb/sh2017 identified in Kinshasa, DRC, imported from West Africa and locally transmitted. Clinical specimens were collected and tested by PCR. We performed whole genome sequencing using a tiled-amplicon sequencing approach with Clade IIb MPXV-specific primers. The phylogenetic tree shows that Kinshasa Clade IIb MPXV is assigned to Clade IIb/sh2017 within the newly designated lineage G.1, as identified in January 2025 in Sierra-Leone.

AB - Clade I mpox virus (MPXV) is endemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Recent studies have described the changing epidemiology of mpox in the country, which has been mainly characterized by the emergence of new MPXV lineages, Clade Ib/sh2023 and Ia/sh2024, associated with sustained human-to-human transmission. Both Clade Ib/sh2023 and Ia/sh2024 are co-circulating in Kinshasa, the capital city of the DRC. Here, we report the first two cases of Clade IIb/sh2017 identified in Kinshasa, DRC, imported from West Africa and locally transmitted. Clinical specimens were collected and tested by PCR. We performed whole genome sequencing using a tiled-amplicon sequencing approach with Clade IIb MPXV-specific primers. The phylogenetic tree shows that Kinshasa Clade IIb MPXV is assigned to Clade IIb/sh2017 within the newly designated lineage G.1, as identified in January 2025 in Sierra-Leone.

KW - Clade II

KW - Drc

KW - Democratic Republic of the Congo

KW - Mpxv

KW - Case investigations

KW - Genome sequencing

KW - Mpox

KW - Mpox virus

KW - Viruses

KW - Democratic Republic of the Congo/epidemiology

KW - Genome, Viral

KW - Humans

KW - Orthopoxvirus/genetics

KW - Male

KW - Phylogeny

KW - Mpox, Monkeypox/virology

KW - Whole Genome Sequencing

KW - Female

KW - Adult

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U2 - 10.3390/v18010087

DO - 10.3390/v18010087

M3 - A1: Peer-reviewed journal articles

C2 - 41600851

SN - 1999-4915

VL - 18

JO - Viruses-Basel

JF - Viruses-Basel

IS - 1

M1 - 87

ER -

Mpox Clade IIb Virus Introduction into Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, July 2025

Abstract

Keywords

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DESTIME: Deciphering the Role of Sexual Transmission in Mpox Evolution

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Mpox Clade IIb Virus Introduction into Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, July 2025

Abstract

Keywords

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DESTIME: Deciphering the Role of Sexual Transmission in Mpox Evolution

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