International health experts meet in search for Ebola Bundibugyo vaccine options

 A panel of experts led by ​the World Health ​Organization will meet on Tuesday to discuss if there are any vaccine options to help tackle a major Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
There have ⁠been 131 suspected deaths and 500 ⁠cases linked to the outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, according to the WHO. The WHO and ‌Africa Centers for Disease ​Control and Prevention ⁠have both declared it a ​public health emergency.
There are ‌no approved vaccines or treatments for the Bundibugyo strain of ​Ebola, which has a fatality rate of up to 40%.
However, there is a vaccine named Ervebo, manufactured by Merck, that is used for the Ebola ‌Zaire strain but has shown evidence of ​providing some protection against Bundibugyo in animal studies. ​The ‌potential ⁠for testing this and other options will be on the agenda.
'When you have an ​outbreak with a strain that does ⁠not have countermeasures, ​we are going to advise on the best approach to take,' said Dr Mosoka Fallah, acting director of the science department ​at Africa CDC. 'We will look at ​what evidence we have and make a decision.'