Moderna starts human trials for Bundibugyo Ebola vaccine as Congo's outbreak continues

Moderna has announced that the first participants in its clinical trial have been vaccinated against the Bundibugyo Ebola virus, marking the start of Phase 1 trials in Canada. The trial will involve around 80 volunteers and will assess the vaccine's safety, tolerability, and immune response. The vaccine candidate is built on Moderna's mRNA platform, the same technology used in its COVID-19 vaccine.

There is currently no vaccine specifically for the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola virus disease. "Getting Moderna's vaccine candidate into a Phase 1 trial this rapidly is a major step forward in the fight against this deadly outbreak," said Richard Hatchett, chief executive officer of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI). CEPI is a global public-private partnership that finances and accelerates the development of vaccines against emerging infectious diseases.

In June, CEPI announced investments in a portfolio of vaccine candidates, including those from the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative, Moderna, and the University of Oxford. Oxford launched its own Phase 1 trial in July as part of efforts to tackle the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in history. The vaccines will be manufactured at the Serum Institute of India.

The Democratic Republic of Congo is currently experiencing its second-largest Ebola outbreak ever, with cases spreading faster than in previous surges. As of Tuesday, government data showed 3,802 recorded cases and 1,707 deaths. The peak of the outbreak is still unclear, according to Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya, who on Tuesday made his second visit to Bunia, a town near the epicentre in Ituri province.

Kaseya noted that 60–70% of new cases are linked to community transmission rather than contact tracing. "Contact tracing is not working," he said. "We don't like the trajectory of this outbreak, and it's already the second-largest outbreak ever in the world." The outbreak is largely concentrated in eastern Congo's remote Ituri province, which accounts for nearly 90% of cases, but cases have also been confirmed in five other provinces, including Kisangani, one of the country's largest cities.