WASHINGTON –Volunteers in Maryland are rolling up their sleeves in the
hunt for a safe and effective Ebola vaccine.
They are part of a trial of a promising experimental vaccine at the University
of Maryland School of Medicine, which has played a leading role among
institutions of higher learning in the field of vaccine research.
Twenty volunteers have already been vaccinated at the university’s medical
campus in Baltimore. They were injected with a vaccine developed by the
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in collaboration with
the pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline.
This particular vaccine has performed very well in animal tests — creating a
bit of medical buzz. The National Institutes of
Health conducted a pilot
test on its safety in humans in September, clearing the way for researchers at
Maryland’s Center for Vaccine Development to test its effectiveness.
First results from the University of Maryland trial are due in a month or two
— and these volunteers are expected to be followed for a year to see how well
they produce anti-bodies against Ebola
This same vaccine is also being tested in Britain, Switzerland and Mali — the
latest west African nation to confirm multiple cases of the disease.
It’s all part of an accelerated global process to get vaccines to the areas
hardest hit by Ebola as soon as possible. Well over 5000 people in eight
countries have died during this latest Ebola outbreak out of more than 15,000
cases identified in eight countries.
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