The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) has announced that it will urgently accelerate the development of three investigational vaccines targeting the Bundibugyo ebolavirus that has caused a rapidly spreading epidemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and neighbouring Uganda, including one being developed by the Oxford Vaccine Group at the University of Oxford.
The funding will advance each vaccine candidate, so they are ready to begin clinical trials as quickly as possible. The University of Oxford vaccine will be manufactured at the Serum Institute of India.
With no licensed vaccines available for Bundibugyo virus and none in clinical development, CEPI’s action reflects the critical need to produce tools to help curtail the outbreak, complementing ongoing public health interventions by affected countries.
The current outbreak – declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) and a Public Health Emergency of Continental Security (PHECS) by the World Health Organization and Africa CDC, respectively – has already caused more than 900 suspected cases and more than 220 suspected deaths, making it the third largest filovirus outbreak in history.
The three vaccine candidates were selected based on CEPI’s comprehensive global review of Bundibugyo virus vaccines in development and extensive consultation with WHO, Africa CDC, ANRS-MIE, Gavi and affected countries. Each uses a different validated vaccine technology to maximise the likelihood of success.
All of the underlying vaccine technology platforms have extensive safety data and have been used to develop vaccine candidates that have shown preclinical or clinical efficacy against related filoviruses. CEPI has committed initial funding of up to US$8.6 million to fund preclinical testing and other development activities to rapidly prepare for phase 1 trials of a vaccine based on the University of Oxford’s ChAdOx1 platform, which underpinned the Oxford/AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. The funding will also support creation of a master virus seed stock and manufacturing of clinical-grade doses at SII under CEPI’s pre-existing agreement with the company. This programme leverages CEPI’s existing strategic partnership with the University of Oxford and SII’s participation in CEPI’s Vaccine Manufacturing Facility Network.
The epidemic, alongside recent Hantavirus outbreaks, underscores the urgent need to strengthen public health responses, accelerate medical countermeasures development, and invest in preparedness for increasingly complex infectious disease threats. CEPI’s response reinforces the importance of advancing R&D across viral families, strengthening vaccine platform readiness, and maintaining ready-to-activate networks – capabilities essential to delivering the 100 Days mission and enabling equitable, rapid and resilient epidemic and pandemic responses.