New Ebola Strain Vaccine Development Timeline Uncertain Due to Complexity

World Health Organization Declares Public Health Emergency Over Ebola Outbreak

The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a public health emergency of international concern over an outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda. The WHO stated that the latest outbreak is a serious public health issue.

According to the WHO, the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola has a fatality rate of up to 50 percent and no approved vaccine is currently available. The previous Ebola outbreak in West Africa, which lasted from 2013 to 2016, killed at least 11,000 people.

The epicentre of the latest outbreak is located in DRC’s northeastern province of Ituri, near the borders with Uganda and South Sudan. The virus has also spread into neighboring provinces and beyond the DRC’s borders, resulting in an estimated 131 deaths from 513 suspected cases.

In Uganda, at least one person has died and two more people have been infected with the latest strain of the virus. Over 120 people are being quarantined in Uganda, according to government spokesperson Alan Kasujja.

Residents in both countries are expressing concern over the outbreak, with some fearing for their safety due to their daily interactions with others. “I am afraid of bringing the disease home to my family because I spend the whole day transporting people,” said a motorbike driver.

The WHO chief, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has stated that he is “deeply concerned” about the scale and speed of the epidemic. The Bundibugyo strain of Ebola is a distinct species within the Ebola virus family and differs from the Zaire Ebola virus strain, which caused the large 2014-2016 West Africa outbreak.

Experts note that ongoing conflicts in the region, weak surveillance systems, and delayed detection will make the latest outbreak more challenging to contain. “Early cases may have been missed in part because many front-line diagnostic platforms were optimized for Zaire Ebola virus and do not reliably detect Bundibugyo virus,” said Krutika Kuppalli, associate professor at UT Southwestern Medical Center.

The WHO has declared a public health emergency of international concern over the outbreak, and efforts are underway to contain the spread of the virus.

Source: Al Jazeera