In a big boost to the global fight against the deadly Ebola virus, scientists have found 53 existing drugs that may keep the Ebola virus from entering human cells, a key step in the process of infection.
Among the better known drug types shown to hinder infection by an Ebola virus model include several cancer drugs, antihistamines and antibiotics.
Among the most effective at keeping the virus out of human cells were found to be microtubule inhibitors used to treat cancer, according to researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
The next step is to test the re-purposed drug candidates in animal studies to see if useful doses against the virus come with toxic side effects.
If any of prove to be safe and effective, the government may opt to deploy them in the outbreak areas.
At present, there is no approved treatment for Ebola virus infection and the estimated mortality rate of the current Ebola outbreak is nearly 70%.
Ebola vaccine trials are getting underway as well, but vaccines will not be available for some time.
