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WHO Proposes Testing Ervebo Vaccine Against Ebola Bundibugyo Strain in DRC

2 sources · Brazil

Who reported this

  • UOL Brazil · Centre-left · Grupo Folha
  • Folha de S.Paulo Brazil · Centre · Grupo Folha (Frias family)

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The World Health Organization (WHO) announced on Friday, the 7th, a recommendation to test the Ervebo vaccine in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Ervebo is currently the only approved ebola vaccine, but it was developed for the Zaire strain rather than the Bundibugyo variant causing the current epidemic. The WHO suggests this course of action because there is currently no specific immunizer available for the Bundibugyo variant.

WHO specialists reviewed preliminary data from animal studies suggesting that Ervebo provides some protection against the Bundibugyo strain without significant safety issues. While experts state that finding a specific vaccine for Bundibugyo remains the preferred option, they recommend prioritizing a randomized clinical trial of Ervebo within the context of the current outbreak.

The DRC declared its seventeenth ebola outbreak on May 15, several weeks after it began in the Ituri province before spreading to the east and northeast. Authorities have reported 4,053 confirmed cases, with 1,850 resulting in death. For comparison, the most lethal outbreak in the country occurred between 2018 and 2020, causing nearly 2,300 deaths among 3,500 patients.

How each side framed it

Centre-left
The report provided a factual account of the vaccine trial proposal and the current health crisis in the DRC.
Centre
The report presented the WHO recommendation and the epidemiological data as neutral facts.

Sources

100% of the statements in this article were traced back to the source articles listed above.