First volunteer receives experimental Ebola vaccine
A UK man is the first to receive a new vaccine developed in Oxford, targeting a specific strain of the virus.
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The first person worldwide to receive an experimental vaccine against the Ebola virus is a 37-year-old man from the UK named Ed Hunt. He received the jab in Oxford, where scientists developed the vaccine. The trial aims to assess the safety of the vaccine and the immune response it generates.
Background to the Trial
Mr Hunt stated that he was motivated to volunteer after seeing news reports about the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He had previously been unable to participate in a Covid-19 vaccine trial due to work commitments. The experimental vaccine was created using the same technological approach as one of the UK's Covid-19 vaccines, developed by scientists in Oxford in approximately eight weeks. This marks the initial human trial for a vaccine specifically targeting the Bundibugyo species of Ebola, against which existing licensed vaccines are ineffective.
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Professor Teresa Lambe, who led the development team at the University of Oxford, explained that the rapid creation of the vaccine was possible due to decades of prior research. She clarified that the vaccine cannot cause Ebola. The current phase one clinical study involves 50 healthy volunteers aged between 18 and 55. The trial's objective is to confirm the vaccine's safety and its ability to provoke a strong, potentially protective immune response against the Bundibugyo strain.
Broader Context and Future Plans
While four vaccines are in development for the Bundibugyo species, this Oxford-developed vaccine is the first to commence human testing. A separate, licensed vaccine exists for the Zaire species of Ebola, but it does not offer protection against Bundibugyo. The Oxford team has indicated that a second, smaller Ebola vaccine trial is scheduled to start soon in Uganda, with a larger study to evaluate efficacy planned for the Democratic Republic of Congo. The Serum Institute in India has already produced 600,000 doses of the Oxford vaccine, pending successful trial outcomes. As reported by the BBC, over 2,500 confirmed cases of Ebola have been recorded in the Democratic Republic of Congo, resulting in more than 1,000 fatalities.
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