The rare species of Ebola, known as Bundibugyo, for which there is no proven vaccine, kills around a third of those infected.

📻 Breaking It Down

Scientists at Oxford University are developing a new vaccine that could be ready for clinical trials within two to three months to help tackle the Ebola emergency.

The outbreak, centred on the Democratic Republic of Congo, has resulted in 750 suspected cases and 177 deaths.

The rare species of Ebola, known as Bundibugyo, for which there is no proven vaccine, kills around a third of those infected.

📌 What You Need to Know

There are no guarantees the vaccine will prove effective and it will take animal research and trials on people to know if it will be.

But scientists say they are working urgently in case the outbreak spirals and their experimental vaccine is needed.

The risk from the current Ebola outbreak has now been upgraded from “high” to “very high” in the Democratic Republic of Congo, by the World Health Organization (WHO).

In the wider region the risk is also now considered to be high but it remains low internationally, it added.

This comes after the WHO declared a public health emergency of international concern on Sunday, when it stressed that the outbreak was not a pandemic.

Another separate experimental Bundibugyo vaccine is also in development, but it is expected to take six to nine months for any dose of that to be ready for testing.

📰 Source: Capital FM Kenya