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 Monkeys which were deliberately infected with the Ebola virus have been successfully cured in a trial of a new antibody drug cocktail, raising the possibility of a human cure for the deadly virus. According to the report in Nature, researchers based at the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg, Canada, administered three different antibodies to macaques monkeys infected with the Zaire virus — the deadliest strain of Ebola, and a scourge to those living in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Gabon. The concoction, named ZMAb, was given to two monkeys 24 hours after being infected, and the other two 48 hours after infection - and all four survived without side effects. The four who weren't lucky enough to receive any treatment died as expected within five days of infection. Gary Kobinger, a medical microbiologist from the University of Manitoba and leader of the trial, said "the antibodies slowed replication until the animals' own immune systems kicked in and completely cleared the virus". The results of the trial were published in the journal Science Translational Medicine on 13 June. The antibodies were extracted from mice which had been vaccinated against the Zaire strain, and work by targeting and neutralising the glycoprotein on the surface of the virus that allows it to enter and infect cells. The antibodies themselves are being developed by a biotechnology firm based in Toronto, Canada, called Defyrus. Defyrus is hoping to test the safety of the treatment in humans in a phase I clinical trial set to begin before the end of 2014. Top 3D image of Ebola virus via Shutterstock.com/Creations.
– A potentially big breakthrough against the Ebola virus: Researchers came up with a drug cocktail that completely cured infected monkeys, reports io9. In the study, scientists infected 12 monkeys with the particularly lethal Zaire strain of the virus. Four that got the cocktail within 24 hours survived, two of the four that got it within 48 hours lived, and the four who got no dose were dead in five days, notes Wired. "The treatment works by having the antibodies slow down the replication rate of the virus in the infected monkey until its own immune system is able to kick-in and finish the job," explains George Dvorsky at io9. It's not ready for humans, though biologists sound confident it won't be too long before the treatment becomes a staple kept on hand for outbreaks. "This is certainly a viable strategy, and they have only a few steps before they can go through to humans," says one.