KAMPALA, Feb. 4 (Xinhua) -- The ongoing Ebola vaccine trial in Uganda is an achievement in the fight against the disease, the World Health Organization (WHO) has said.
In a statement posted on its website late Monday, the WHO said the trial, which began with contacts of the index Ebola case in the country, aims to assess the clinical efficacy of a candidate vaccine against the Sudan strain of the Ebola virus.
According to the UN agency, this is the first-ever vaccine trial for the Sudan strain of Ebola.
It noted that principal investigators from Uganda's Makerere University and the state-run Uganda Virus Research Institute (UVRI), with support from the WHO and other partners, worked to prepare the trial within four days at Mulago National Referral Hospital in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, following the outbreak's confirmation on Jan. 30.
"This is a critical achievement toward better pandemic preparedness and saving lives when outbreaks occur," said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, as quoted in the statement.
This is possible because of the dedication of Uganda's health workers, the involvement of local communities, the Ministry of Health of Uganda, Makerere University, and UVRI, as well as research efforts led by the WHO involving hundreds of scientists, he added.
There are no approved treatments or vaccines for the Sudan strain of Ebola, but early initiation of supportive care has been shown to significantly reduce mortality, according to the WHO.
The WHO has donated 2,160 doses of the trial vaccine to Uganda. ■