On Jul. 29, 2021, SIGA Technologies announced that it had entered into a collaboration with Oxford University in the United Kingdom to provide TPOXX (tecovirimat) under an expanded access protocol to treat individuals affected by mpox in the Central African Republic (CAR).

Under the agreement, Oxford University sponsor the protocol and study in CAR, and SIGA provided up to 500 courses of TPOXX (tecovirimat) at no cost.

Tecovirimat (TPOXX or ST-246^®, SIGA Technologies, New York, NY, USA) has been identified as a potential candidate for the treatment of mpox. It is a small-molecule antiviral drug and was originally developed and subsequently approved in accordance with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Animal Efficacy Rule for the treatment of smallpox. Tecovirimat is now also approved by the European Medicine Agency (EMA) for the treatment of orthopoxvirus disease (smallpox, mpox, cowpox) and for vaccinia complications in adults and children weighing at least 13 kilograms.