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The first human trial of a new Ebola vaccine is underway at two sites in Nova Scotia as well as in Toronto.
The vaccine, created by Moderna, targets Bundibugyo Ebola virus, a deadly strain that has been surging in the Democratic Republic of Congo, causing more than 1,700 known deaths and 3,800 infections during the recent outbreak.
The first participant received the vaccine in Truro, N.S., on Monday. A total of 80 volunteers will receive the vaccine across the three sites, including Truro, Halifax and Toronto.
Hamilton Bennett, Moderna’s executive director of health security, research and development and partnerships, told Radio-Canada that the three sites were chosen for the Phase 1 study because of the company’s previous positive experiences working with partners there.
“Nova Scotia has incredibly deep vaccine experience that Moderna has seen firsthand,” Bennett said.
“When you’re trying to move at the pace that we’re trying to move with this Ebola outbreak, understanding who your partner is on the other side of the phone is really important.
“Trusting that they’re going to be able to work with you to deliver on time and with quality is really important. And we’ve had that experience with these sites before and we were more than keen to work with them again on this trial.”
‘People are very altruistic’
Scott Halpern, the principal investigator for the clinical trial in Halifax and a professor of pediatrics and microbiology and immunology at Dalhousie University, said “people are very altruistic” and willing to participate in vaccine trials in Canada.
“When they see that a vaccine is being developed for an emergency outbreak like this, even though it’s not a risk to them and likely never will be, people are still interested in volunteering in order to contribute to developing vaccines that are going to save lives elsewhere,” Halpern said.
The Phase 1 vaccine trial is primarily intended to assess the safety of the vaccine, such as whether it causes pain at the injection site, fevers, fatigue or other side effects.
It will also assess the participants’ immune response to the vaccine, including whether they produce a strong antibody response.
Participants will be intensively monitored over the first week, with ongoing monitoring taking place over the next year to track any long-term side effects.
Halpern said participants will be recruited through social media, a website and a database of people who have been involved in trials in the past. He said they usually receive a small amount of money — typically between $50 and $100 — for participating.
The next phases of clinical development will occur in East Africa in or near the outbreak zone.
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