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| Ebola: The hunt for a vaccine | Ebola: The hunt for a vaccine |
| (2 days later) | |
| In a hospital in Oxford, a British woman is set to play a part in the global battle against the biggest outbreak of Ebola in history. | In a hospital in Oxford, a British woman is set to play a part in the global battle against the biggest outbreak of Ebola in history. |
| She has been injected with a scrap of genetic material from the deadly virus, packaged inside a chimp cold virus, in the first UK study of the vaccine. | She has been injected with a scrap of genetic material from the deadly virus, packaged inside a chimp cold virus, in the first UK study of the vaccine. |
| With trials under way in the US - and more planned in Africa - huge hopes are resting on the vaccine, which gave monkeys long-term protection. | With trials under way in the US - and more planned in Africa - huge hopes are resting on the vaccine, which gave monkeys long-term protection. |
| It was developed by scientists at the Swiss-Italian biotechnology company Okairos, which was bought by Britain's GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) earlier this year. | It was developed by scientists at the Swiss-Italian biotechnology company Okairos, which was bought by Britain's GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) earlier this year. |
| Speaking from Basel, chief executive Riccardo Cortese, said scientists at the company had been working on the vaccine for six years. | Speaking from Basel, chief executive Riccardo Cortese, said scientists at the company had been working on the vaccine for six years. |
| It was developed in collaboration with the vaccine research centre at the US National Institutes of Health (NIH). | It was developed in collaboration with the vaccine research centre at the US National Institutes of Health (NIH). |
| "We made the vaccine and they did all the animal testing, which proved to be quite satisfactory," he told the BBC. | "We made the vaccine and they did all the animal testing, which proved to be quite satisfactory," he told the BBC. |
| "So it was decided even before the outbreak to proceed quickly to a safety-and-immunogenicity test in humans. | "So it was decided even before the outbreak to proceed quickly to a safety-and-immunogenicity test in humans. |
| "This programme has been accelerated as a consequence of the outbreak." | "This programme has been accelerated as a consequence of the outbreak." |
| Fast progress | Fast progress |
| Okairos is under contract with GSK to manufacture all the vaccine doses for the UK, US and planned African arm of the trial at its site in Italy. | Okairos is under contract with GSK to manufacture all the vaccine doses for the UK, US and planned African arm of the trial at its site in Italy. |
| Alfredo Nicosia, chief scientific officer, said it was realistic that the vaccine could reach the field "in a few months". | Alfredo Nicosia, chief scientific officer, said it was realistic that the vaccine could reach the field "in a few months". |
| "The pace will be much more accelerated than in any normal circumstance," he said. "That is as fast as we could go." | "The pace will be much more accelerated than in any normal circumstance," he said. "That is as fast as we could go." |
| He said it was not known how humans would respond to the jab, but based on similar vaccines, there was reason to be optimistic. | He said it was not known how humans would respond to the jab, but based on similar vaccines, there was reason to be optimistic. |
| Scaling up production should be relatively straightforward, he added. | Scaling up production should be relatively straightforward, he added. |
| The trial will determine if the vaccine is safe and if it triggers an adequate immune response. | The trial will determine if the vaccine is safe and if it triggers an adequate immune response. |
| Experts say there is no risk that the vaccine can cause someone to become infected with Ebola. | Experts say there is no risk that the vaccine can cause someone to become infected with Ebola. |
| On the basis of tests on a few hundred people, the vaccine may be rolled out to high risk groups. | On the basis of tests on a few hundred people, the vaccine may be rolled out to high risk groups. |
| According to the World Health Organization, healthcare staff and other front-line workers would probably be the first to be offered the jab. | According to the World Health Organization, healthcare staff and other front-line workers would probably be the first to be offered the jab. |
| A handful of people have tested three other experimental Ebola vaccines over the past decade, but none have progressed further. | A handful of people have tested three other experimental Ebola vaccines over the past decade, but none have progressed further. |
| According to Dr Benjamin Neuman, a virologist at the University of Reading, who is not involved in the vaccine trial, the reason was financial. | According to Dr Benjamin Neuman, a virologist at the University of Reading, who is not involved in the vaccine trial, the reason was financial. |
| "It takes a lot of money to put into people," he told me. "The will wasn't there at the time." | "It takes a lot of money to put into people," he told me. "The will wasn't there at the time." |
| Dr Neuman said if all went well, a vaccine could be available as soon as January. But he warned the immune system was a very complex thing, and it was hard to know whether it would work well enough to protect against Ebola. | Dr Neuman said if all went well, a vaccine could be available as soon as January. But he warned the immune system was a very complex thing, and it was hard to know whether it would work well enough to protect against Ebola. |
| "The real test of this vaccine will be when it gets into Africa and when a person who has had the vaccine comes into contact with Ebola," he added. | "The real test of this vaccine will be when it gets into Africa and when a person who has had the vaccine comes into contact with Ebola," he added. |
| Jonathan Ball, Professor of Molecular Virology at the University of Nottingham, said monkeys were protected from Ebola infection for a few weeks after a single jab of the vaccine. | |
| "Even relatively short-lived vaccine could have a major impact on controlling Ebolavirus outbreaks like the one we are witnessing in Western Africa," he said. | |
| "Vaccines could also have a role in preventing future outbreaks, especially those capable of eliciting long-term protection. | |
| "But, we also have to be realistic. The places where Ebola outbreaks are most likely to happen lack good health infrastructures, and so rolling out vaccine programmes will not be easy. | |
| "As for total eradication through vaccination - this is fairly inconceivable due to the large animal reservoir that's out there maintaining the virus year on year. | |
| Follow Helen on Twitter. | Follow Helen on Twitter. |