scholarly journals Two-antibody pan-ebolavirus cocktail confers broad therapeutic protection in ferrets and nonhuman primates

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zachary A. Bornholdt ◽  
Andrew S. Herbert ◽  
Chad E. Mire ◽  
Shihua He ◽  
Robert W. Cross ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nonhuman Primates ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Democratic Republic ◽  
Democratic Republic Of Congo ◽  
Rapid Development ◽  
Emerging Infectious Diseases ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Research Model ◽  
Class Antibody ◽  
Antibody Cocktail

All available experimental vaccines and immunotherapeutics1,2 against Ebola virus (EBOV), including rVSV-ZEBOV3 and ZMappTM4, lack activity against other ebolaviruses associated with human disease outbreaks. This year, two separate outbreaks of EBOV in the Democratic Republic of Congo underscored the unpredictable nature of ebolavirus reemergence in a region that has historically experienced outbreaks of the divergent ebolaviruses Sudan virus (SUDV) and Bundibugyo virus (BDBV)5. Here we show that MBP134AF, a pan-ebolavirus therapeutic comprising two broadly neutralizing human antibodies (bNAbs)6,7(see companion manuscript, Wec et al.) could protect against lethal EBOV, SUDV, and BDBV infection in ferrets and nonhuman primates (NHPs). MBP134AF not only not only establishes a viable therapeutic countermeasure to outbreaks caused by antigenically diverse ebolaviruses but also affords unprecedented effectiveness and potency—a single 25-mg/kg dose was fully protective in NHPs. This best-in-class antibody cocktail is the culmination of an intensive collaboration spanning academia, industry and government in response to the 2013-2016 EBOV epidemic6,7 and provides a translational research model for the rapid development of immunotherapeutics targeting emerging infectious diseases.

Assessing the management of healthcare waste for disease prevention and environment protection at selected hospitals in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo

2021 ◽  
pp. 0734242X2110481
Author(s):  
Gabriel Kalombe Kyomba ◽  
Joêl Nkiama Numbi Konde ◽  
Diafuka Saila-Ngita ◽  
Thomas Kuanda Solo ◽  
Guillaume Mbela Kiyombo
Keyword(s):  
Waste Management ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Democratic Republic ◽  
Democratic Republic Of Congo ◽  
Bottom Ash ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Republic Of Congo ◽  
Healthcare Waste ◽  
Health Care Waste

Incineration is the most used healthcare waste (HCW) disposal method. Disease outbreaks due to Ebola virus and SARS-CoV2 require attention to HCW management to avoid pathogens spread and spillover. This study describes HCW management prior to incineration and hospital incinerators performance by analysing bottom ashes from hospitals in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo. We used semi-structured interviews to capture information on pre-incineration waste management and analysed the chemical composition of 27 samples of incinerator bottom ashes using the energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence. Neither sorting nor waste management measures were applied at hospitals surveyed. Incinerator operators were poorly equipped and their knowledge was limited. The bottom ash concentrations of cadmium, chromium, nickel and lead ranged between 0.61–10.44, 40.15–737.01, 9.11–97.55 and 16.37–240.03 mg kg−1, respectively. Compared to Chinese incinerator performance, the concentrations of some elements were found to be lower than those from China. This discrepancy may be explained by the difference in the composition of HCW. The authors conclude that health care waste in Kinshasa hospitals is poorly managed, higher concentrations of heavy metals are found in incinerator bottom ashes and the incinerators quality is poor. They recommend the strict application of infection prevention control measures, the training of incinerator operators and the use of high-performance incinerators.

EBOLA OUTBREAKS AND INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS: CASE STUDIES OF CENTRAL AND WEST AFRICA REGIONS

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (02) ◽  
pp. 431-452 ◽  
Author(s):  
NOURRIDINE SIEWE ◽  
SUZANNE LENHART ◽  
ABDUL-AZIZ YAKUBU
Keyword(s):  
West Africa ◽  
Democratic Republic ◽  
Democratic Republic Of Congo ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
International Travel ◽  
Economic Community ◽  
Infectious Disease Outbreaks ◽  
International Borders ◽  
Travel Restrictions ◽  
National Borders

Ebola outbreaks in Africa have occurred mostly in the Central and West Africa regions that are politically identified as the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) and Economic Community of Western African States (ECOWAS), respectively. In the ECOWAS region, people and goods are allowed to travel freely across national borders of all the 15 member countries, but in the ECCAS region such regional travel across the national borders of its 10 member countries is limited. In this paper, we use parameterized mathematical models of Ebola to investigate the effects of free international travel, and the timing of border closings, on the high number of Ebola infection cases and deaths of the recent 2014–2016 Ebola outbreaks in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone (ECOWAS); as compared to previous and current outbreaks in Democratic Republic of Congo (ECCAS, 1976–2018). Simulations of our single-patch Ebola model without movement of humans across international borders are shown to capture the recorded numbers of Ebola infections and deaths in the ECCAS region, and simulations of our 3-patch model with interpatch movements capture that of the ECOWAS region. We obtain that international travel restrictions and timing of border closings can play important roles in mitigating against the spread of future fatal infectious disease outbreaks.

scholarly journals Emergence of Ebola Virus Escape Variants in Infected Nonhuman Primates Treated with the MB-003 Antibody Cocktail

Cell Reports ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 2111-2120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey R. Kugelman ◽  
Johanny Kugelman-Tonos ◽  
Jason T. Ladner ◽  
James Pettit ◽  
Carolyn M. Keeton ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nonhuman Primates ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Virus Escape ◽  
Antibody Cocktail

scholarly journals Identification and Molecular Characterization of New Simian T Cell Lymphotropic Viruses in Nonhuman Primates Bushmeat from the Democratic Republic of Congo

2012 ◽  
Vol 28 (6) ◽  
pp. 628-635 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steve Ahuka-Mundeke ◽  
Placide Mbala-Kingebeni ◽  
Florian Liegeois ◽  
Ahidjo Ayouba ◽  
Octavie Lunguya-Metila ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
T Cell ◽  
Molecular Characterization ◽  
Nonhuman Primates ◽  
Democratic Republic ◽  
Democratic Republic Of Congo ◽  
Republic Of Congo

scholarly journals Real-time projections of Ebola outbreak size and duration with and without vaccine use in Équateur, Democratic Republic of Congo, as of May 27, 2018

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Daniel Kelly ◽  
Lee Worden ◽  
Rae Wannier ◽  
Nicole A. Hoff ◽  
Patrick Mukadi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Time Series ◽  
Regression Model ◽  
Vaccination Coverage ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Democratic Republic ◽  
Democratic Republic Of Congo ◽  
Credible Interval ◽  
Transmission Model ◽  
Republic Of Congo ◽  
Outbreak Size

AbstractBackgroundAs of May 27, 2018, 54 cases of Ebola virus disease (EVD) were reported in Équateur Province, Democratic Republic of Congo. We used reported case counts and time series from prior outbreaks to estimate the current outbreak size and duration with and without vaccine use.MethodsWe modeled Ebola virus transmission using a stochastic branching process model with a negative binomial distribution, using both estimates of reproduction number R declining from supercritical to subcritical derived from past Ebola outbreaks, as well as a particle filtering method to generate a probabilistic projection of the future course of the outbreak conditioned on its reported trajectory to date; modeled using 0%, 44%, and 62% estimates of vaccination coverage. Additionally, we used the time series for 18 prior Ebola outbreaks from 1976 to 2016 to parameterize a regression model predicting the outbreak size from the number of observed cases from April 4 to May 27.ResultsWith the stochastic transmission model, we projected a median outbreak size of 78 EVD cases (95% credible interval: 52, 125.4), 86 cases (95% credible interval: 53, 174.3), and 91 cases (95% credible interval: 52, 843.5), using 62%, 44%, and 0% estimates of vaccination coverage. With the regression model, we estimated a median size of 85.0 cases (95% prediction interval: 53.5, 216.6).ConclusionsThis outbreak has the potential to be the largest outbreak in DRC since 2007. Vaccines are projected to limit outbreak size and duration but are only part of prevention, control, and care strategies.

scholarly journals COVID-19 Outbreak in Africa: Lessons and Insights from the West African Ebola Virus Disease Epidemics

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 96-99
Author(s):  
Oluwafolajimi Adetoye Adesanya
Keyword(s):  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Democratic Republic Of Congo ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Ebola Virus Disease ◽  
African Continent ◽  
Outbreak Response ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Response Strategies ◽  
Past Experiences

Over the years, the African continent has had to battle several outbreaks of infectious diseases in different countries. Some of the most deadly were the Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreaks that occurred in West Africa between 2014 and 2016 affecting Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone and, more recently, from 2018 to 2020 in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). In the era of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important that as a continent, we draw lessons and insights from our past experiences to guide outbreak response strategies being deployed to curb the latest onslaught. The Ebola outbreaks have shown that disease outbreaks should not be seen only as medical emergencies, but as full blown humanitarian crises, because oftentimes, their socio-economic impacts are more devastating than the more obvious cost to life. In this mini-review, we explore the possible humanitarian costs of the COVID-19 pandemic on the African continent by looking through the lens of our past experiences with the EVD outbreaks, highlighting how the current pandemic could significantly affect the African economy, food security, and vulnerable demographics, like children and the sexual and reproductive health and rights of women and girls. We then proffer recommendations that could be instrumental in preventing a double tragedy involving the devastating health consequences of the virus itself and the deadly fallout from its multi-sectoral knock-on effects in African countries. Keywords: COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, Ebola Virus Disease, Coronavirus.

scholarly journals Warning: Ebola arrived in Columbus land

2016 ◽  
Vol 64 (3) ◽  
pp. 401
Author(s):  
Felipe Coiffman
Keyword(s):  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Democratic Republic ◽  
Democratic Republic Of Congo ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
The United States ◽  
West African ◽  
Fruit Bat ◽  
Scientific World ◽  
The Village ◽  
The Town

A few years ago, only some students of geography knew that Ebola was the name of a small river in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In 1976, in the village of Yambuku, a man died of a rare hemorrhagic fever which alerted the scientific world. Rumor has it that this man bought a fruit bat and later cooked and ate it, along with his family; some days later, all of them died. The cause of these deaths was a virus that was later called the Ebola virus (1). After this event, the epidemic spread throughout the town and then to other places. Today, about 4 000 people worldwide have been killed by the virus, including one case in the United States, two in Spain and one in Brazil. Only 1 in 10 infected patients survive and poor calculations estimate 20 000 people infected, especially in the West African republics.

scholarly journals Offering patients more: how the West Africa Ebola outbreak can shape innovation in therapeutic research for emerging and epidemic infections

2017 ◽  
Vol 372 (1721) ◽  
pp. 20160294 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda M. Rojek ◽  
Peter W. Horby
Keyword(s):  
West Africa ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Nipah Virus ◽  
Emerging Infectious Diseases ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
International Travel ◽  
Marburg Virus ◽  
World Health ◽  
The West

Although, after an epidemic of over 28 000 cases, there are still no licensed treatments for Ebola virus disease (EVD), significant progress was made during the West Africa outbreak. The pace of pre-clinical development was exceptional and a number of therapeutic clinical trials were conducted in the face of considerable challenges. Given the on-going risk of emerging infectious disease outbreaks in an era of unprecedented population density, international travel and human impact on the environment it is pertinent to focus on improving the research and development landscape for treatments of emerging and epidemic-prone infections. This is especially the case since there are no licensed therapeutics for some of the diseases considered by the World Health Organization as most likely to cause severe outbreaks—including Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus, Marburg virus, Crimean Congo haemorrhagic fever and Nipah virus. EVD, therefore, provides a timely exemplar to discuss the barriers, enablers and incentives needed to find effective treatments in advance of health emergencies caused by emerging infectious diseases. This article is part of the themed issue ‘The 2013–2016 West African Ebola epidemic: data, decision-making and disease control’.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document