Trends & Technology

An experimental vaccine against Marburg virus (MARV) developed by researchers at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), was found to be safe and induced an immune response in a small, first-in-human clinical trial. This phase 1 study tested an experimental MARV vaccine candidate known as cAd3-Marburg. This vaccine uses a modified chimpanzee adenovirus called cAd3, which can no longer replicate or infect cells, and displays a glycoprotein found on the surface of MARV to induce immune responses against the virus. MARV causes a rapidly progressive febrile illness that leads to shock and death in a large proportion of infected individuals. The symptoms of MARV disease are akin to those seen with Ebola virus and can include fever, headache, chills, rash, abdominal pain, vomiting, and diarrhea. As the disease progresses, patients may suffer from multiple organ dysfunction, delirium, and significant...