As soon as there is an official assignment (on the research collaboration), we will go all out.
Bogor, W java (ANTARA) – Rector of Bogor Agricultural University (IPB) Arief Satria spoke of his side having readied human resources, laboratories, and a primate conservation center to help the government in preventing the monkeypox outbreak in Indonesia.
As a state university, IPB has striven to contribute by holding informal meetings with the Health Ministry during these past few weeks to conduct research collaboration on the prevention and treatment of the disease.
“We will continue to coordinate. As soon as there is an official assignment (on the research collaboration), we will go all out,” the rector remarked here on Sunday.
He noted that currently, IPB’s Primate Animal Study Center (PSSP) laboratory is one of the two main laboratories used by the government to conduct analysis on the samples of suspected monkeypox cases.
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The other facility is the Prof. Sri Oemijati Research Laboratory on Infectious Disease of the Health Ministry’s Center for Health Development Policy (BKPK).
“We are always ready to support the government to mitigate the (transmission of) monkeypox,” Satria stated.
Earlier, Director General of Disease Prevention and Mitigation of the Health Ministry Maxi Rein Rondonuwu said that his side had also readied 10 Environmental Health Engineering Centers (BTKLs) as additional research centers for the disease.
The BTKLs are located in Medan City, Palembang City, Kalimantan region, Banjarmasin City, Yogyakarta City, Surabaya City, Jakarta, Ambon City, Manado City, and Makassar City.
Monkeypox is a disease caused by viral infection of the Orthopoxviridae genus.
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According to data of the World Health Organization (WHO), as of August 11, 2022, at 05:00 p.m. Central European Summer Time (CEST, UTC+2), there were 32,769 confirmed monkey pox cases and 138 probable cases. In addition, the outbreak had claimed 12 lives.
The 10 most affected countries are the United States, Spain, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Brazil, Canada, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Italy.
To date, no confirmed monkeypox case was reported in Indonesia.
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