Scientists Rush to Produce Vaccines Against Rare Ebola Strain Behind Outbreak

The best option is Ervebo, a vaccine made by Merck that targets the Zaire virus, a more common orthoebolavirus that causes Ebola, WHO adviser said.

Health personnel wear protective suits before burying a person suspected of having died from Ebola in Bunia, Congo, on May 25, 2026. Glody Murhabazi/AFP via Getty Images

Scientists are working to test and produce vaccines against the rare virus behind the Ebola outbreak in Africa.

University of Oxford researchers and Serum Institute of India scientists are racing to make available an experimental shot they believe could work against the Bundibugyo virus, which is causing a growing outbreak centered in Congo.