single dose of Ervebo, the only licensed Ebola vaccine, prompted immune T cells that recognized the Bundibugyo virus in 13 of 20 vaccinated adults, according to research announced on October 14 by the German Center for Infection Research. Bundibugyo is the Ebola species driving the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and no vaccine has been licensed against it.
The finding adds a new type of immune evidence while Ervebo is already being tested in the outbreak zone. It does not show that the shot prevents infection, severe illness, or death. Researchers measured an immune signal in blood 28 days after vaccination and did not follow anyone who was later exposed to the virus.
