Rwanda is ready to start studying the vaccine against this deadly disease marburg hemorrhagic fever As the country seeks to control the spread of the ongoing outbreak. So far, the virus has taken the lives of 12 people. The vaccine study, which health officials announced on Sunday, will include the use of 700 investigation doses provided by the US-based. Sabin Vaccine InstituteThese doses will be given to healthcare workers, emergency responders and people who have been exposed to confirmed cases of the virus.

Rwanda’s Health Minister, Sabine Nsanzimana, confirmed that the Rwanda Biomedical Center had conducted a thorough review of the vaccine shipment before starting trials. Although there is currently no authorized vaccine or treatment for Marburg, this clinical trial aims to provide important data to help control the virus. Marburg, which is similar to Ebola, is believed to originate from fruit bats and spread by close contact with infected bodily fluids or contaminated surfaces, such as bed sheets. Without proper treatment, this virus can be fatal in 88 percent of cases.

In a statement, Sabin Vaccine Institute said they have entered into a clinical trial agreement with the Rwanda Biomedical Center to provide doses for the study. Rwanda is currently battling 46 confirmed cases of the virus, with 29 people in isolation. At least 400 people who came in contact with the infected are being monitored.

The outbreak was officially declared in Rwanda on 27 September, with the initial cases detected among patients in health facilities. However, the source of the outbreak remains unknown. Symptoms of the virus include fever, muscle pain, diarrhea, vomiting, and severe blood loss, often leading to death.

Most of the infected people are health workers in six districts of the country, many of which border neighboring countries such as Congo, Burundi, Uganda and Tanzania. As part of the government’s response, strict measures have been implemented, including limiting physical contact, suspending school and hospital visits, and placing restrictions on the number of attendees at funerals of Marburg victims.

Marburg virus has previously spread to countries like Tanzania, Angola, Kenya, South Africa and Uganda. It was first identified in 1967 during a simultaneous outbreak in Germany and Serbia, where seven individuals died while working with infected monkeys.

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