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#16 – The Ebola Outbreak Nobody Was Ready For
An Ebola outbreak is currently unfolding in the Democratic Republic of Congo — caused not by the well-known Ebola Zaire, but by Bundibugyo Ebola virus, a species for which no licensed vaccines or proven treatments exist. This episode covers the basics of Ebola viruses, how they spread, why they cause such severe disease, and what makes this particular outbreak so difficult to contain: it was detected late, it's happening in an active conflict zone, US support has largely been withdrawn, and the medical countermeasures simply aren't there yet. A global pandemic is unlikely given the transmission routes, but for the local population, this is already a serious tragedy.
DRC case tracking [French] https://sante.gouv.cd/epidemie/ebola-bundibugyo-2026
Review about neglected filoviruses (including Bundibugyo): https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4931228/
WHO Bundibugyo outbreak overview: https://www.who.int/emergencies/disease-outbreak-news/item/2026-DON603
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You can support the podcast via our German Steady page:
https://steady.page/virologisch/
Questions, feedback or topic suggestions?
Feel free to contact us at: [email protected]
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Krammer laboratory information
Krammer Laboratory at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
https://labs.icahn.mssm.edu/krammerlab/
Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Science Outreach and Pandemic Preparedness
https://soap.lbg.ac.at/
Ignaz Semmelweis Institute
https://semmelweisinstitute.ac.at/
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Conflict of interest statement
The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai has filed patent applications relating to influenza virus vaccines and therapeutics, SARS-CoV-2 serological assays and NDV-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccines which name me as inventor. Mount Sinai has spun out a company, CastleVax, to commercialize NDV-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccines and I am named as co-founder and scientific advisory board member of that company.
I have previously consulted for Curevac, Merck, Gritstone, Sanofi, Seqirus, GSK and Pfizer and I am currently consulting for 3rd Rock Ventures (US) and Avimex (Mexico).
My laboratory has been collaborating in the past with Pfizer on animal models of SARS-CoV-2 and with GlaxoSmithKline and VIR on the development of influenza virus vaccines and therapeutics and we are currently collaborating with Dynavax, Inspirevax and Inimmune on development of influenza virus vaccines.
My work in the on immunity and infectious diseases in the US is supported by the National Institutes of Health, but also by FluLab and Tito’s Handmade Vodka. In the past I have also received funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, PATH and the US Department of Defense.
My work in Austria is supported by the Ludwig Boltzmann Gesellschaft and by the Ignaz Semmelweis Institute through the Medical University of Vienna.
View all episodes
By Florian Krammer & PodcastwerkstattAn Ebola outbreak is currently unfolding in the Democratic Republic of Congo — caused not by the well-known Ebola Zaire, but by Bundibugyo Ebola virus, a species for which no licensed vaccines or proven treatments exist. This episode covers the basics of Ebola viruses, how they spread, why they cause such severe disease, and what makes this particular outbreak so difficult to contain: it was detected late, it's happening in an active conflict zone, US support has largely been withdrawn, and the medical countermeasures simply aren't there yet. A global pandemic is unlikely given the transmission routes, but for the local population, this is already a serious tragedy.
DRC case tracking [French] https://sante.gouv.cd/epidemie/ebola-bundibugyo-2026
Review about neglected filoviruses (including Bundibugyo): https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4931228/
WHO Bundibugyo outbreak overview: https://www.who.int/emergencies/disease-outbreak-news/item/2026-DON603
+++++
You can support the podcast via our German Steady page:
https://steady.page/virologisch/
Questions, feedback or topic suggestions?
Feel free to contact us at: [email protected]
+++++
Krammer laboratory information
Krammer Laboratory at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
https://labs.icahn.mssm.edu/krammerlab/
Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Science Outreach and Pandemic Preparedness
https://soap.lbg.ac.at/
Ignaz Semmelweis Institute
https://semmelweisinstitute.ac.at/
+++++
Conflict of interest statement
The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai has filed patent applications relating to influenza virus vaccines and therapeutics, SARS-CoV-2 serological assays and NDV-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccines which name me as inventor. Mount Sinai has spun out a company, CastleVax, to commercialize NDV-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccines and I am named as co-founder and scientific advisory board member of that company.
I have previously consulted for Curevac, Merck, Gritstone, Sanofi, Seqirus, GSK and Pfizer and I am currently consulting for 3rd Rock Ventures (US) and Avimex (Mexico).
My laboratory has been collaborating in the past with Pfizer on animal models of SARS-CoV-2 and with GlaxoSmithKline and VIR on the development of influenza virus vaccines and therapeutics and we are currently collaborating with Dynavax, Inspirevax and Inimmune on development of influenza virus vaccines.
My work in the on immunity and infectious diseases in the US is supported by the National Institutes of Health, but also by FluLab and Tito’s Handmade Vodka. In the past I have also received funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, PATH and the US Department of Defense.
My work in Austria is supported by the Ludwig Boltzmann Gesellschaft and by the Ignaz Semmelweis Institute through the Medical University of Vienna.