DR Congo to receive 70,000 doses of Ervebo vaccine as Ebola infections surge

WHO says vaccines for Ebola virus disease being allocated to DRC amid largest outbreak that has killed nearly 2,500.As the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) struggles to manage its largest outbreak of the Ebola virus, it is set to receive 70,000 doses of the Ervebo vaccine which has been effective in previous epidemics.The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday that the doses have been allocated from the global Ebola virus disease vaccine stockpile and would include 20,000 shots to be used in a late-stage trial ‌‌to understand the impact of the vaccine on the Bundibugyo-virus" class="entity-link entity-topic" data-entity-id="127957" data-entity-type="topic">Bundibugyo virus.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Why is the latest Ebola outbreak worsening?list 2 of 4WHO: Ebola can be contained in months if enough funding is providedlist 3 of 4DR Congo’s Ebola outbreak ‘global emergency’ as infections pass 5,000: WHOlist 4 of 4How Ebola became the deadliest outbreak in DR Congo’s historyend of listBundibugyo is responsible for the current outbreak, which has so far killed 2,476 people out of the 5,208 confirmed cases.The Ervebo vaccine is licensed for use against the Ebola virus – one of the viruses that cause Ebola disease – but not for Bundibugyo.“It ⁠⁠is not known whether Ervebo may be ⁠⁠protective against the Bundibugyo-virus" class="entity-link entity-topic" data-entity-id="127957" data-entity-type="topic">Bundibugyo virus in humans,” the WHO said, stressing the importance of clinical trials to provide new evidence.To date, no vaccine or specific treatment has been approved for the Bundibugyo-virus" class="entity-link entity-topic" data-entity-id="127957" data-entity-type="topic">Bundibugyo virus.Health workers in a new Ebola treatment centre in the north east of the DRC [File: AFP]The Congolese government requested last week a release of Ervebo vaccines from the International Coordinating Group on Vaccine Provision.The remaining 50,000 shots will be used for front line and health workers, following recommendations from the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization, the WHO said.The Geneva-based global vaccine alliance, Gavi, said it would provide $7m to fund the shipment to the DRC, along with another $6m to help with vaccination efforts in high-risk areas.