The World Health Organization (WHO) announced that two new Ebola vaccine candidates will be added to a clinical trial in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). This move comes as the nation continues to fight a deadly outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo species of the virus.
The decision follows a recommendation from the WHO's independent Technical Advisory Group on Candidate Vaccines Prioritization. According to the WHO, this marks the first time vaccines specifically designed for the Bundibugyo virus will be evaluated during an active outbreak of the disease.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated that the readiness of these vaccines to enter clinical trials is a testament to the power of science and partnership. He noted that while vaccines alone will not end the outbreak, they could become a powerful new tool for bringing it under control.
The two candidates are ChAdOx1, developed by the University of Oxford with the Serum Institute of India, and mRNA-1469, developed by the American pharmaceutical and biotech company Moderna. The WHO convened an expert group which recommended these candidates for further clinical evaluation this week based on available evidence.
The DRC has been fighting the Bundibugyo virus for nearly six months, resulting in the largest outbreak in the country's history. As of 1 November, there were more than 10,500 confirmed cases and 5,126 deaths.
The WHO is supporting the Tumaini multi-vaccine trial, named after the Swahili word for “hope”. The trial launched on 23 October in Bunia, the capital of Ituri province, which remains the epicenter of the outbreak. The trial currently tests the Ervebo vaccine, which is used for the Zaire species of the Ebola virus, to see if it is effective against the Bundibugyo species.
The two new candidates will enter the trial once they receive national approvals. Tumaini uses a ring-vaccination approach that focuses on contacts of people with confirmed Ebola Bundibugyo. The WHO and its partners pioneered this strategy during the West Africa Ebola outbreak a decade ago.
Currently, four vaccination rings have been established and several more are being prepared. Research into other potential treatments is also moving forward.
