The vaccine, called rVSV-ΔGP-ZEBOV, contains a non-infectious portion of a gene from the Zaire Ebola virus. Lower vaccine doses should be considered when boosting individuals with pre-existing antibodies to Ebolavirus glycoprotein, a finding that has emerged after the vaccine was tested in a country that has experienced Ebolavirus outbreaks in the past.
The worst Ebola virus disease outbreak in history ended in 2016 after infecting 28,600 people and killing approximately 11,300 worldwide. The outbreak led to urgent action by medical experts across the world to combat this devastating disease, including the setting up of trials of vaccines to stop the disease taking hold.
The vaccine was one of two being examined by the World Health Organization (WHO) to identify urgently a vaccine to combat the Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa. The clinical trial was led by colleagues at the University of Tübingen in Germany, coordinated by Professor Peter Kremsner with their partner institute CERMEL in Lambaréné, Gabon.
“An unprecedented Ebola outbreak showed how it is possible for academics, non-governmental organizations, industry, and funders to work effectively together very quickly in times of medical crisis. The results of the trial show how a vaccine could best be used to tackle this terrible disease effectively,” Sanjeev Krishna, a professor at St George’s University of London’s Institute for Infection and Immunity, said. “We need a system of specialists, medical experts, and organizers that maintain vigilance against outbreak diseases like Ebola.”
Krishna was among a consortium of experts called VEBCON convened by the WHO in August 2014 in Geneva to discuss solutions and strategies for combatting the Ebola virus disease crisis. He acted as a scientific advisor to the new studies in Gabon. Krishna is also affiliated with the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Tübingen and carried out collaborative work for many years in Lambaréné.
