OXFORD: Bundibugyo Ebola vaccine trial has begun at the University of Oxford, marking the first Phase I human study of a shot targeting the strain.
The Oxford Vaccine Group launched the BD-Ebov trial in response to an outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and neighbouring Uganda.
The study will assess the safety and immune response of the ChAdOx1 BDBV vaccine. Researchers will enrol 50 healthy adults aged 18 to 55 in Oxford.
The Serum Institute of India manufactured and stockpiled about 620,000 doses of the vaccine candidate in two weeks. It also supplied 4,000 investigational doses for the Phase I trial, according to the University of Oxford.
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The work is backed by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations under an $8.6 million program. The vaccine uses the same viral vector platform as the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine.
Professor Teresa Lambe, Calleva Head of Immunology at the Oxford Vaccine Group and Pandemic Sciences Institute, is the lead scientific investigator. She said the outbreak underlined the urgent need for effective vaccines and treatments.
Professor Katrina Pollock, chief investigator at the Oxford Vaccine Group, said the trial would evaluate safety, tolerability and immune responses.
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Africa CDC Director General Dr Jean Kaseya said early-stage trials were not an immediate solution for affected communities.
However, he said they were critical for building tools for the current response and future outbreaks.
