On a Zoom call with journalists on Tuesday, the researchers confirmed that clade 1b is spreading through touch, something which is “incredibly worrying,” according to Prof Lang.
It was spreading mother to child, as well as in schools and workplaces, they said.
Presentation of the diseases also differs markedly from previous stains.
The virus had caused an “alarming” number of miscarriages in young women, said the researchers, and the lesions and blistering it causes were spread across the entire body, rather than confined to the genital area.
The death rate was estimated at five and 10 per cent in adults and children respectively.
“It’s causing extreme danger in terms of disease severity,” said Leandre Murhula Masirika, who is leading the research on the new strain in the DRC.
Whole-body rashes, eye problems, and fever were common symptoms, he added.
‘The tip of the iceberg’
The virus appears to be spreading fast. The researchers believe it has already jumped borders in Africa and there are fears – that like Clade 2 – it could spread around the globe.
Cases have been reported in DRC towns that border Rwanda, Burundi, and Uganda.
Experts believe it is highly likely that the virus has already reached these neighbouring countries, although no cases have been officially reported anywhere other than the DRC.
Sex workers regularly travel between the DRC and its neighbours – an obvious route of transmission.
The city of Goma, which has a population of nearly one million, including tens of thousands of refugees, has an international airport which operates frequent direct flights to and from Europe.
