Scientists in Britain have launched a clinical trial for a treatment of monkeypox.
Academics from the University of Oxford, who were behind the Covid Recovery trial, want to assess whether an antiviral drug can help alleviate symptoms among those infected. The researchers are hoping to recruit 500 people to join the trial to test whether Tecovirimat - also known as Tpoxx - can help reduce the amount of time people are sick.
The drug, which was created to treat smallpox, works by preventing the virus from leaving the infected cell, which stops the spread of the virus within the body. Health officials in the UK licenced the drug earlier this year based on results from initial studies in animals and safety evidence from human volunteers.
