8 years ago
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Ebola Survivors May Be the Key to Treatment—For Almost Any Disease
Ebola survivors’ immune systems now make antibodies to the virus. Those antibodies are, essentially, the ideal medicine. By Erica Check Hayden.
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http://www.wired.com
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Ebola Returns to Liberia
Three cases of the disease have been confirmed in the country, which previously had been Ebola-free for nearly two months. By Julie Beck. -
After Ebola outbreak, Liberia’s health care system struggles to rebound
Hundreds of thousands in donor funds remain unaccounted for while doctors complain about not getting their hazard pay. (June) -
Bush meat trade roaring again despite Ebola ban
Despite a ban on bush meat, due to the threat of Ebola, Liberians are once again selling it in markets and along the sides of roads. By Prince Collins. (June) -
Is Sierra Leone sleep walking into another round of Ebola epidemic?
The Ebola epidemic in West Africa which has taken the life of over 11,000 people in Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia, may have significantly receded, especially with Liberia being [wrongly] declared Ebola free, but Sierra Leone and Guinea continue to record new cases of the deadly disease... (June) -
Diagnosing Ebola in minutes
New test, successful in field trial, may prove game-changer for treatment, containment. (June) -
Trial of Canadian Ebola drug stopped after no overall benefit shown
A clinical trial of what was once thought to be one of the brightest hopes for an Ebola drug has been halted after an interim assessment concluded there was no sign the experimental product was offering overall benefit. (June)
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The title is exaggerating, but it's a great article nevertheless. Cheaper antibodies that take less time to produce would be great. Yet, as the article mentioned, viruses do change and evolve. So, sooner or later, most antibodies would become inefficient and we would have to rush to develop new ones while ill patients are fighting the disease in hospitals.
In this sense, what is more important is the development of "universal antibodies". These antibodies target parts of the virus that do no change that much. These would be especially important for diseases like HIV and influenza which are really good at changing to avoid antibody attacks. I've added a related scientific link, if you're interested in universal antibodies. Or here's a snap on universal flu vaccine (a nice read as well),