Ebola Virus Disease News and Research

Latest Ebola Virus Disease News and Research

Ebola epidemic reveals critical weaknesses in global public health system

In the year since the World Health Organization (WHO) was first notified of an outbreak of what proved to be Ebola virus disease in the west African country of Guinea, more than 24,000 cases have been reported and over 10,000 individuals have died - primarily in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

30 Mar 2015

Two experimental Ebola vaccines appear to be safe in PREVAIL clinical trial in Liberia

Two experimental Ebola vaccines appear to be safe based on evaluation in more than 600 people in Liberia who participated in the first stage of the Partnership for Research on Ebola Vaccines in Liberia (PREVAIL) Phase 2/3 clinical trial, according to interim findings from an independent Data and Safety Monitoring Board review.

30 Mar 2015

Promising clinical trial results for ebola vaccines

Interim findings from a clinical trial (PREVAIL) in which two experimental Ebola vaccines were given to more than 600 people in Liberia indicate that the vaccines are safe for use in humans. Based on these positive results, the vaccines may continue into the next stage of clinical evaluation; a phase 3 trial sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health.

27 Mar 2015

New Ebola vaccine shows promise in first phase 1 clinical trial

Results from the first phase 1 trial of an Ebola vaccine based on the current (2014) strain of the virus are today published in The Lancet. Until now, all tested Ebola virus vaccines have been based on the virus strain from the Zaire outbreak in 1976. The results suggest that the new vaccine is safe, and provokes an immune response in recipients, although further long-term testing will be needed to establish whether it can protect against the Ebola virus.

27 Mar 2015

Guinean Government initiates first efficacy trial of Ebola vaccine in Basse-Guinée

The Guinean Government with the World Health Organization initiated the very first efficacy trial of an Ebola vaccine this week in an affected community of the Basse-Guinée, one of the areas where most Ebola cases are found in the country.

27 Mar 2015

Ebola more likely to be fatal for young children

Ebola progresses more quickly and is more likely to be fatal for children under five, according to new research. An international group of scientists led by Imperial College London and the World Health Organization analysed data on Ebola cases in children under 16 during the current outbreak in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, comparing them to cases in adults.

27 Mar 2015

CMV-based vaccine provides long-lasting protective immunity against Ebola virus

A cytomegalovirus (CMV)-based vaccine provides long-lasting protective immunity against Ebola virus, and has potential for development as a disseminating vaccine strategy to prevent ebolavirus infection of wild African ape populations.

25 Mar 2015

Cepheid's Xpert Ebola diagnostic test granted FDA Emergency Use Authorization

Cepheid today announced it has received Emergency Use Authorization from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration for Xpert Ebola, a molecular diagnostic test for Ebola Zaire Virus that delivers results in less than two hours.

25 Mar 2015

Researchers use genetic information to track the fatal spread of multidrug-resistant TB

Scientists have for the first time used DNA sequencing to trace the fatal spread of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis between patients in the UK.

24 Mar 2015

Scientists use DNA sequencing to trace the spread of drug-resistant TB

Scientists have for the first time used DNA sequencing to trace the fatal spread of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis between patients in the UK.

24 Mar 2015

Pathogen may cause high levels of virulence in closely-related hosts

When viruses such as influenza and Ebola jump from one species to another, their ability to cause harm can change dramatically, but research from the University of Cambridge shows that it may be possible to predict the virus's virulence by looking at how deadly it is in closely-related species.

23 Mar 2015

WHO calls for intensification of routine immunization services in all Ebola-affected areas

A growing risk of outbreaks of measles, pertussis, and other vaccine-preventable diseases in countries affected by Ebola must be countered by urgent scaling up of routine immunization activities, according to the World Health Organization.

21 Mar 2015

Case Western Reserve professor urges action to eliminate yaws

Half a century ago, a concentrated global effort nearly wiped a disfiguring tropical disease from the face of the earth. Now, says Case Western Reserve's James W. Kazura, MD, it's time to complete the work.

20 Mar 2015

New technology developed to determine resistance to rabies virus

Researchers at Texas A&M AgriLife Research have developed a new technology to determine sensitivity or resistance to rabies virus.

20 Mar 2015

New UNICEF report highlights urgency of reducing Ebola cases

Ebola has had a devastating impact on children, who make up about 20 per cent of infections in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. To protect them and their communities, it is critical to defeat this scourge, while working to restore basic services, UNICEF said in a report released today.

17 Mar 2015

People’s health at the centre of new global blueprint to reduce disaster risks

Ten years since adopting the Hyogo Framework for Action shortly after the Indian Ocean Tsunami, government representatives have gathered in Sendai to negotiate a new framework for global action to reduce the risks of disasters. For the first time, protecting people's health is at the centre of such a framework.

16 Mar 2015

World Health Organisation (WHO) joins with ESCMID to fight global infections

The European Society for Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) has been joined by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to launch the 7th annual ‘International Day for Fighting Infection’ (April 24th, 2015).

16 Mar 2015

Study: Countries most affected by Ebola outbreak may soon have 100,000 more measles cases

An international study involving the University of Southampton suggests there could be a rise in measles cases of 100,000 across the three countries most affected by the Ebola outbreak in West Africa due to health system disruptions.

16 Mar 2015

GHTC report confronts key challenge of renewing US leadership in global health technology

Today, the world is looking to the United States for cutting-edge diagnostics, drugs, and vaccines that could have the last word on an Ebola outbreak that is down but not out. But those innovations are the product of past US investments in research and development (R&D).

13 Mar 2015

Ebola crisis increases susceptibility to measles, other vaccine-preventable illnesses

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health researchers say that major disruptions in the health care systems in West Africa caused by the Ebola crisis have led to significant decreases in vaccinations for childhood diseases, increasing susceptibility to measles and other vaccine-preventable illnesses.

13 Mar 2015