Last year, as the disease spread around the globe, Canada experienced its first major mpox outbreak. Increasingly, zoonotic diseases that were once contained to one geographic region are becoming worldwide health emergencies.
On May 11, 2023, the World Health Organization announced that mpox no longer constitutes a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). Even though the current mpox situation no longer represents a global health emergency, the Government of Canada recognizes that mpox is still circulating in Canada and globally. The ongoing management of mpox relies on continued vigilance for re-emergence of cases and a variety of public health measures.
Today, the Honourable Rob Oliphant, Member of Parliament for Don Valley West, announced, on behalf of the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health, an investment of $6.35M from the Government of Canada to support thirteen teams across Canada that will carry out national and global health research projects on mpox and other zoonotic threats. This new investment recognizes the continued risks of transmission of mpox and the threat posed by other zoonotic diseases in Canada and globally. This builds on the December 2022 investment of $5.5M in two research projects to better understand mpox transmission, evaluate potential vaccines and treatments, and learn how to disseminate this knowledge quickly.
All thirteen research projects are supported through the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). Funded projects focus on the effectiveness of the smallpox vaccine against mpox, vaccination campaigns and mitigation strategies as well as identifying possible mammalian hosts of the mpox virus, and mathematical modelling of zoonotic disease transmission. The funded research projects include:
- Dr. Devon Greyson and researchers from the University of British Columbia and Dr. Michael Irvine and his team at the B. C. Centre for Disease Control will assess the effectiveness of public health and vaccination campaigns tailored to individuals living with HIV/AIDS and gay, bisexual, and men who have sex with men.
- Dr. Alyson Kelvin and researchers from the University of Saskatchewan will leverage international partnerships to better understand mpox in its countries of origin in Central Africa.
- Dr. Robert Kozak and researchers from the University of Toronto will gauge the risk of a poxvirus outbreak in the Canadian agricultural sector.
- Dr. Bouchra Nasri and her team at Université de Montréal's School of Public Health will develop an epidemiological model of mpox that includes behavioural change. The modelling will be driven by the scientific literature and near real-time behavioural information from social media on prevailing attitudes towards mpox and members of the gay, bisexual and men who sex with men (gbMSM) community.
The work of zoonotic disease specialists in Canada will have a major impact at home and abroad. Through this research, Canada is taking a lead role in funding interdisciplinary research teams that will provide policymakers, clinicians, public health actors, and high-risk communities with timely and relevant evidence to better prevent, prepare for, and respond to current and future outbreaks of mpox and other zoonotic threats.
