Africa CDC to Use Zaire Ebola Vaccine as Stop-Gap for Faster-Spreading Bundibugyo Strain

African health authorities are planning to deploy a vaccine developed for the Zaire ebolavirus strain to combat the current, rapidly spreading outbreak of a different strain, known as Bundibugyo, in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). This stop-gap measure comes as the current outbreak exhibits unprecedented speed and severity.

Jean Kaseya, Director General of the Africa Centres for Disease Control (Africa CDC), stated that preliminary evidence suggests the vaccine can eliminate deaths, if not symptoms, in test cases. However, the Africa CDC and the World Health Organization (WHO) are also initiating research to investigate potential mutations or abnormalities in the Bundibugyo strain, which is spreading six to eight times faster than any recorded past outbreak. Kaseya noted that the WHO and Africa CDC need to conduct studies to ensure there are no additional issues with the virus, given the outbreak's severity.

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As Dr. Tedros shared with me yesterday, it's time for the WHO and Africa CDC to conduct studies to check that there is no issue, additional issue, or maybe if the virus is not mutating, because the level of severity of this Bundibugyo outbreak is unprecedented.

The current outbreak, declared in mid-May, has already become the second-largest on record. As of Tuesday, 3,973 cases were confirmed, with 1,801 deaths. This strain is causing fatalities at a rate six times faster than the 2014-2016 West Africa outbreak. Cases have expanded to 51 health zones, a significant increase from nine in May. Kaseya warned that anyone in the hardest-hit city of Bunia or the Ituri region should be considered a potential contact.

Compounding the public health crisis, medical staff in the most affected regions are continuing strikes and protests. Their grievances include non-payment or inadequate pay and poor working conditions, which hinder the ongoing response efforts. The comparison to previous outbreaks highlights the alarming rate of spread, with one confirmed case now emerging for every 10 contacts traced in DRC, compared to one in 57 during the 2018-2020 Zaire strain outbreak.

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This outbreak is just expanding.