1st human studies promising for Ebola vaccine designed in Winnipeg

By Helen Branswell The Canadian Press

A vial of the Canadian-made Ebola vaccine VSV-ZEBOV, is pictured in a recent photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research - Col. Shon Remich.

TORONTO The first human trials of a designed-in-Canada Ebola vaccine suggest it is safe and triggers a rapid immune response, studies published Wednesday reveal.

The work, based on six different clinical trials in the United States, Switzerland, Germany, Gabon and Kenya, found the vaccine quickly generates antibodies in people who receive it. Whether those antibodies protect against infection remains to be seen, but early evidence suggests that is a strong possibility.

The vaccine is called rVSV-ZEBOV and was designed by scientists at the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg, part of the Public Health Agency of Canada. It is being developed by U.S. biotech NewLink Genetics and pharma giant Merck.

READ MORE:Canadian Ebola vaccine being put to the test

Published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the research describes Phase 1 clinical trials and shows for the first time what happens when this vaccine is given to a number of people.

Phase 1 trials are designed to show if an experimental product is safe and to help determine what an appropriate dose should be. They are too small to answer the question: Does this vaccine work?

It is hoped the answer will come from larger Phase 3 trials currently underway in West Africa.

The research, grouped into two reports, shows people who received the vaccine started to generate antibodies quickly. That is an attractive feature in a vaccine that would be used to quell future Ebola outbreaks, if it makes it through the licensing process.

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1st human studies promising for Ebola vaccine designed in Winnipeg