Promising Canadian Ebola vaccine to begin clinical trials

Clinical trials are now starting for an experimental made-in-Canada Ebola vaccine amid growing global concern over the disease that’s left more than 4,000 people dead.

Federal Health Minister Rona Ambrose called the trials “promising news” in the fight against the largest-ever Ebola outbreak. As part of a process Ambrose said is moving at “unprecedented speeds,” results of the first phase are expected in December, and the hope is the vaccine can be deployed shortly thereafter.

At this time, however, it’s unclear if the vaccine will ever reach people on the ground in West Africa — and critics say the trials didn’t happen nearly fast enough.

“This is a shameful delay,” said Amir Attaran, a University of Ottawa professor and Canada Research Chair in law, population health, and global development policy.

“The competing vaccine is way ahead of where we are, and that worries me,” he added.

That second experimental vaccine is being produced by pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline alongside the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and human trials have already started in Africa.

The Canadian vaccine — which many scientists consider the more promising of the two — was developed by researchers at the Public Health Agency of Canada’s National Microbiology Laboratory. Ambrose said it has been “100-per-cent effective” in preventing the spread of the Ebola virus when tested on animals.

The first phase of human clinical trials will be conducted in a lab in Silver Spring, Md., and will test the vaccine on a small group of healthy people to assess its safety, help determine proper dosage levels and identify any side-effects.

Read full original article: Canadian-made Ebola vaccine starting clinical trials in humans

 

 

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