Oxford scientists developing new Ebola vaccine amid outbreak

The Oxford Vaccine Group (OVG) is using the same technology that underpinned the Covid-19 jab to develop a new vaccine for the specific strain of Ebola virus in the current outbreak.

The rare species of Ebola that is currently spreading in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, known as Bundibugyo, has no proven vaccine and kills 30 to 50 per cent of those infected.

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Bundibugyo has only caused two previous outbreaks, in Uganda in 2007 and then in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2012, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said.

People in protective masks wait in the corridor of a hospital in Bunia, Congo, Tuesday, May 19,May 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Dirole Lotsima Dieudonne) (Image: Dirole Lotsima Dieudonne)

Professor Teresa Lambe, Calleva head of vaccine immunology at the OVG, said: “My hope is that this outbreak can be brought under control quickly and that vaccines are ultimately not needed.

“Nevertheless, our team and partners will continue working to ensure that potential vaccine options are available if they are needed.

“The ability to move rapidly in situations like this has been built on many years of vaccine research and close collaboration with our global partners.”

Health workers chat at an Ebola treatment center in Bunia, Congo, Tuesday, May 19 (Image: Dirole Lotsima Dieudonne)

The OVG previously tested Ebola vaccines in response to the 2013-2016 West Africa outbreak, which contributed to a different Ebola vaccine being approved by the European Medicines Agency in 2020.

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WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the UN health agency had assessed the risk within the Democratic Republic of the Congo as ‘very high’ and said the virus is ‘spreading rapidly’.

The WHO chief told reporters that 82 cases have been confirmed in the country, with almost 750 suspected cases, seven confirmed deaths and 177 suspected deaths.

The risk remains low internationally, according to WHO.