World Vision Ireland welcomes new Ebola Vaccine developed by Janssen

• Johnson & Johnson announces European Commission Approval for Janssen’s Preventative Ebola Vaccine
• Janssen’s AdVac® technology is also being used to develop a vaccine candidate to prevent COVID-19
• Between 2014 and 2016, there were 30,000 Ebola cases and 11,000 Ebola-related deaths in West Africa
• 3,000 cases and 2,000 deaths from Ebola were recorded in the DRC (Democratic Republic of the Congo) in 2018 – a mortality rate of 65%

Johnson & Johnson has announced the European Commission Approval for a Preventative Ebola Vaccine, created by Janssen, its pharmaceutical company. This marks the first major regulatory approval of a vaccine developed by Janssen. The Ebola vaccine regimen leverages Janssen’s AdVac® technology, plus Bavarian Nordic’s established MVA-BN® technology. Enabled by this approval, Janssen is now collaborating with the World Health Organisation (WHO) on vaccine pre-qualification, which should accelerate registration of its preventive Ebola vaccine regimen in African countries and facilitate broader access to those most in need.

“The approval of our Ebola vaccine symbolizes the progress Janssen has made towards achieving our vision of delivering potentially transformational vaccines to communities most at risk of deadly infectious diseases. Not only is it the first vaccine to emerge from our vaccines pipeline, it is also the first approved vaccine to be developed using Janssen’s AdVac® technology. The same technology is being used to develop vaccine candidates to protect against SARS-CoV-2, as well as Zika, RSV and HIV.” said Mathai Mammen, M.D., Ph.D., Global Head, Janssen Research & Development, LLC.

“We are pleased that the European Commission (EC) has granted Marketing Authorisation to Janssen for a new Ebola vaccine.” Aoife Reilly, the EBODAC Project Manager at World Vision Ireland, said. “It is specifically designed to induce long-term immunity against the Ebola virus in adults and children aged one year and above. As such, it can be used to support preventive vaccination in countries most at risk of outbreaks. World Vision Ireland played an important role in supporting the development of this vaccine. In response to the West Africa Ebola crisis, we collaborated in a unique, multi-partner global effort to accelerate the vaccine through multiple clinical trials across three continents. We are delighted by today’s approval of this Ebola vaccine, which has already been deployed in the North Kivu region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), following recommendation from the WHO’s Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE), and in Rwanda –following conditional approval in 2019 under an ‘exceptional emergency’ – as part of outbreak containment efforts in the region.”

With the world currently focused on stopping the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for safe and effective vaccines to protect vulnerable populations from emerging infectious diseases has never been more apparent. World Vision Ireland said it is proud to have been a part of this journey, which marks a significant moment in the ongoing public health effort with the aim to prevent new Ebola outbreaks before they start.