The city-based Ella Foundation, a health research organisation, claimed to have made a breakthrough in developing vaccine for the deadly Ebola virus. On Monday, it announced that preliminary clinical trials on mice, which developed antibodies to the recent Ebola virus strain, were complete. Members of the organisation now want the Indian government to take forward the project in the nation’s interests.
“We are done developing technology and now the government has to take care of it,” said Krishna M. Ella, founder-director of Ella Foundation. “This is a not-for-profit programme and we have invested our own money in it. Now the government has to go ahead with the rest of the clinical trials as well as taking it to the public. We are fine even if the government shares it with Africa.”
Mr. Krishna said an Ebola vaccine was the need of the hour in a country like India. “The availability of a vaccine will help India in its preparedness to combat the disease in case the virus lands on our shores. The population density is very high in India and even sweating can lead to spread of the virus. If the government takes up the project in mission mode then the vaccine can be ready in a year.”
The foundation, which has been working on the project for the past eight months, is developing the vaccine that can be administered as a nasal spray or through intravenous injection. Members said the project was not commercially viable and hence would be in cold storage if the government did not offer help.
Nagendra Hegde, group leader, Ella Foundation informed that governments as well as bioscience companies in many countries had taken special interest in developing the vaccines by investing huge money. In India, there has been no government funding to develop an Ebola vaccine, said Mr. Hegde.
Ella Foundation, which has developed the vaccine, has urged the Centre to take it up and initiate clinical trials
