Moderna gets $50 million to develop mRNA Ebola vaccine against Bundibugyo

Moderna 获 5000 万美元资助，用于开发针对本迪布焦（Bundibugyo）毒株的 mRNA 埃博拉疫苗

The global health organization Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) announced Monday that it will “urgently accelerate development” of three vaccine candidates against Bundibugyo ebolavirus (BDBV), pledging a little over $60 million in the effort to extinguish an outbreak currently raging out of control in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. 全球卫生组织“流行病防范创新联盟”（CEPI）周一宣布，将“紧急加速”三种针对本迪布焦埃博拉病毒（BDBV）候选疫苗的开发，并承诺投入 6000 多万美元，以遏制目前在刚果民主共和国失控蔓延的疫情。

Under the plans, CEPI has committed up to $50 million to US-based Moderna for preclinical development and Phase 1 clinical testing of its mRNA-based BDBV vaccine candidate. The funding will simultaneously allow the company to ramp up manufacturing capabilities and ready large-scale Phase 2/3 trials in the event the vaccine makes it through early testing. 根据计划，CEPI 已承诺向总部位于美国的 Moderna 公司提供最高 5000 万美元的资金，用于其基于 mRNA 的 BDBV 候选疫苗的临床前开发和一期临床试验。这笔资金将同时支持该公司提升制造能力，并为疫苗通过早期测试后的二/三期大规模临床试验做好准备。

The vaccine will use Moderna’s mRNA vaccine platform that allowed for rapid development of a COVID-19 vaccine during the pandemic. “[W]e believe our mRNA platform can play an important role in responding rapidly to emerging infectious disease threats,” Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel said in a statement Monday. ” We will move with urgency and scientific rigor to support the response and help bring a potential vaccine closer to the communities that need it most.” 该疫苗将使用 Moderna 的 mRNA 疫苗平台，该平台曾在疫情期间助力新冠疫苗的快速开发。Moderna 首席执行官 Stéphane Bancel 在周一的一份声明中表示：“我们相信，我们的 mRNA 平台可以在快速应对新发传染病威胁方面发挥重要作用。我们将以紧迫感和科学严谨的态度支持此次应对工作，并帮助将潜在的疫苗更快地提供给最需要的社区。”

Raging outbreak 疫情肆虐

CEPI will also provide $3.2 million to the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative, which is developing a vaccine that uses the same technology as Merck’s approved Ebola vaccine, Ervebo, which targets the more common Zaire ebolavirus strain. Last, the CEPI is committing $8.6 million to the University of Oxford and Serum Institute of India, which is using its adenovirus-based vaccine platform, as it did for its COVID-19 vaccine during the pandemic. CEPI 还将向国际艾滋病疫苗倡议组织（IAVI）提供 320 万美元，该组织正在开发一种疫苗，其技术与默克公司已获批的埃博拉疫苗 Ervebo 相同，后者针对的是更常见的扎伊尔埃博拉病毒株。最后，CEPI 还向牛津大学和印度血清研究所承诺投入 860 万美元，用于开发其基于腺病毒载体的疫苗平台，正如他们在疫情期间开发新冠疫苗时所做的那样。

There are two licensed vaccines against Ebola disease currently, including Ervebo and Zabdeno/Mvabea by Johnson & Johnson. Both vaccines target the Zaire strain, which has caused most of the large outbreaks to date, followed by the Sudan strain. The current outbreak is only the third driven by the Bundibugyo strain. As such, there are currently no licensed therapeutics or vaccines against it. 目前有两种获批的埃博拉疫苗，包括 Ervebo 和强生公司的 Zabdeno/Mvabea。这两种疫苗均针对扎伊尔毒株，该毒株导致了迄今为止大多数大规模疫情，其次是苏丹毒株。目前的疫情是第三次由本迪布焦毒株引起的。因此，目前尚无针对该毒株的获批疗法或疫苗。

The lack of medical interventions is one of the challenges facing health officials responding to the outbreak. Detection of the outbreak was delayed, allowing the virus to spread out of control. Disease is also spreading in an area of DRC with armed conflict, large population mobility, and significant need for humanitarian assistance. 缺乏医疗干预措施是卫生官员在应对此次疫情时面临的挑战之一。由于疫情发现延迟，导致病毒失控蔓延。此外，疫情传播地区位于刚果民主共和国境内，当地存在武装冲突、人口流动频繁，且对人道主义援助需求巨大。

As of Friday, the World Health Organization reported 1,041 cases (135 confirmed, 906 suspected) and 241 deaths (18 confirmed, 223 suspected) in the outbreak. 截至周五，世界卫生组织报告称，此次疫情已导致 1041 例病例（135 例确诊，906 例疑似）和 241 例死亡（18 例确诊，223 例疑似）。