Trial Drug for Ebola Virus Effective to Monkeys
An experimental drug called 'Zmapp' has found to be effective when administered to monkeys with Ebola Virus.
Rhesus macaque is the breed of monkey on which Zmapp is rendered, five days after the infection. All 18 monkeys were 100 % successfully cured by the expermental drug Zmapp and made a complete recovery. Those not given with Zmapp became seriously ill and died immeadiately.
Zmapp is a combination of three lab-made antibodies that is designed to neutralize the ebola virus.
Zmapp, named 'the secret serum' was also given to seven people with the Ebola virus. Unfortunately, only five people recovered while the other two died from the disease. But nonetheless, the expermental drug is said to be the most important step forward from the previous antibody combinations made because of the level of improvement.
And since the course of the infection in human is slower than the macaques, it has been carefully estimated that the experimental drug may be effective for as late as nine to eleven days after the infection.
Researchers from the Public Health Safety of Canada, the scientists conducting the experiment, led by Dr. Gary Kobinger, hopes that initial safety testing in humans will be undertaken soon to trully assess the effectiveness of Zmapp in people.
With the Ebola virus disease mutating rapidly, it makes it harder to diagnose and treat. The World Health Organization (WHO) said that the Ebola virus disease outbreak in West Africa coould eventually claim up to 20,000 victims. The latest figures shows that there were 1, 552 deaths from the 3,069 cases. WHO aims to stop the Ebola transmission in those affected countries within six to nine months and prevent its spread internationally.
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Published at: 09/03/2014
