(Science) – Pioneering studies are underway to address massive outbreak of rare Bundibugyo virus in the Congo

Those grim statistics also mean the outbreak is a chance for scientists to learn more about Bundibugyo, the rare Ebola species responsible, and test vaccines and drugs to fight it. On 15 July, the first ever trial of an Ebola drug to protect people who aren’t sick but have been exposed to the virus was launched. Two weeks earlier, a trial of drugs to treat patients had begun. And a phase 1 study of a vaccine candidate kicked off in Oxford, U.K., on 13 July. “It’s remarkable to see these clinical trials up and running this quickly,” says Isaac Bogoch, an infectious disease expert at Toronto General Hospital. (Read More)