US Sends Experimental Ebola Drug to Congo

Washington is quietly widening who gets access to a new Ebola drug. After initially reserving experimental antibody treatment MBP134 for Americans exposed to the virus, the US is now sending undisclosed quantities to the Democratic Republic of Congo for use in clinical trials and "compassionate use," says a Health and Human Services spokesperson, reports Reuters. The shift comes as Congo battles the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, which has sickened more than 1,000 people and killed over 250. Cases also have been reported in Uganda, and the CDC has said this could end up as the worst Ebola outbreak ever without a strong response.

The World Health Organization says that doses of MBP134 from Mapp Biopharmaceutical and other therapies are being shipped and that trials should start within weeks in a conflict-ridden region where distrust, attacks on health workers, and fragile supply lines complicate research. MBP134 will be tested alone and in combination with Gilead's remdesivir, while another Gilead drug, obeldesivir, will be evaluated as a preventative. Vaccine candidates, including one from Oxford and the Serum Institute of India and another from Moderna, are further behind, with first-stage trials expected to launch outside Congo as early as next month.