Ebola vaccine won't prevent another outbreak

Ebola killed well over 11,000 people in 2014. More than all other outbreaks combined. Yet, despite the recently released vaccine boasting a 100% success rate, it's not going to stop you catching this deadly virus.

Vaccines protect individuals and populations from disease by injecting antigens (small pieces of the virus or bacteria) into your body. But, hey! Injecting me with the bad stuff surely is the same as catching it?! Not really. It's more like being mauled by baby lion than torn apart by Mum. In fact, the amount is so small that your body practically flicks it away without you even knowing it was there (apart from the needle stuffed in your arm, of course). Your immune system sees the anitgen, hunts it down and builds a new, highly specialised army ready to fight if Mum does decide to pay a visit. This primary response is like the front line. If Mummy was unlucky enough to attack your immune system, it would have perfectly trained soldiers ready in wait with weapons targeted just for her.

The new ebola vaccine does just that. A tiny piece of ebola is injected into you and lets your body do the rest. This is great news for future ebola sufferers. But, unfortunately it's not going to stop you catching it because the vaccine isn’t to be released on mass. Unlike other preventative vaccines, the ebola vaccine is only available to those already infected (or their close family). Not ideal, but you can’t deny it’s better than your options a year ago. Then you had a very high chance of quick and painful death. Not everyone infected died though. Some had immune systems strong enough to fight it off. A select few others survived because they were lucky enough to be offered the medical treatment of passive immunity.

Unlike active immunity where your body fights the infection itself (i.e. healthy immune system or vaccination), passive immunity sends in some reinforcements for you. The most common form of passive immunity is when a mother breastfeeds her baby. She passes immune cells called antibodies to her infant which fight any antigens that dare attack her child. Antibodies are the dudes on the front line. The soldiers that hunt down the antigen. This is great because it allows the babies own immune system to develop whilst Mum holds the fort. Doctors can do a similar thing for you (minus the breastfeeding part). By injecting you with antibodies you have a fighting chance. It’s not as good as active immunity. It's temporary for a start, but, I doubt you'd be turning your nose up with Ebola coursing through your body. This passive immunity treatment was offered to only a handful of patients. Luckily, now, thanks to the World Health Organisation and their team of scientists, we won’t need to use methods like this for future ebola outbreaks.