Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Jun 3: The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) has announced funding support for the development of three investigational vaccines targeting the Bundibugyo ebolavirus, which is responsible for the ongoing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and neighbouring Uganda.
The vaccine candidates selected for support have been developed by IAVI, Moderna, and the University of Oxford. The Oxford vaccine candidate will be manufactured by Serum Institute of India (SII).
CEPI said there are currently no licensed vaccines available against the Bundibugyo virus and none in clinical development, making the initiative critical to strengthening efforts to contain the outbreak alongside ongoing public health measures.
The coalition also plans to assess additional vaccine candidates through an open call for proposals and is expected to announce further partnerships in the coming months.
CEPI Chief Executive Richard Hatchett said the rapid spread of the Bundibugyo virus and the absence of approved vaccines make urgent action essential.
The current outbreak has been declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) by the World Health Organization and a Public Health Emergency of Continental Security (PHECS) by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. According to CEPI, the outbreak has resulted in more than 900 suspected cases and over 220 suspected deaths, making it the third-largest filovirus outbreak recorded to date.
The three vaccine candidates were selected following a global review conducted by CEPI in consultation with the WHO, Africa CDC and other health experts. Each candidate uses a different vaccine technology platform to maximise the chances of success.
CEPI noted that the technologies behind the vaccines have already demonstrated strong safety records and have previously been used in vaccine candidates targeting related filoviruses, including Zaire Ebola virus, Sudan virus and Marburg virus.
The coalition said existing safety data and prior experience suggest that safe and effective vaccines against the Bundibugyo virus can be developed.
Under the funding programme, CEPI has committed up to 3.2 million US dollars to IAVI to generate a Master Virus Seed stock and initiate testing using materials originally developed at the University of Texas Medical Branch.
It has also committed up to 50 million US dollars for preclinical testing and Phase 1 clinical trials of Moderna’s vaccine candidate. The programme includes simultaneous dose manufacturing to enable large-scale Phase 2 and Phase 3 trials if early data prove successful. The vaccine uses the same mRNA technology platform that was validated during the Covid-19 pandemic.
For the Oxford candidate, CEPI has committed up to 8.6 million US dollars to support preclinical studies and development work ahead of Phase 1 trials. The vaccine is based on the ChAdOx1 platform, which was used in the Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine.
The funding will also support creation of a Master Virus Seed stock and the production of clinical-grade doses at the Serum Institute of India under CEPI’s existing agreement with the company.
Commenting on the collaboration, Adar Poonawalla said SII would use its manufacturing capabilities to help accelerate the development of the Bundibugyo virus vaccine candidate in partnership with CEPI and the University of Oxford.
If Phase 1 trials prove successful, CEPI said it expects to support late-stage clinical studies aimed at securing emergency-use authorisation or full regulatory approval for the vaccines.