By Julie Steenhuysen
CHICAGO, June 1 (Reuters) - Merck is in discussions with various global health authorities about making its COVID antiviral pill molnupiravir available as an Ebola treatment to address the widening outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a senior executive told Reuters.
The outbreak, which has so far infected a suspected 1,100 people and resulted in 42 deaths, involves a rare strain of the virus called Bundibugyo for which there are no approved vaccines or treatments.
"Molnupiravir
is a non-specific RNA virus drug. We're thinking about how we could use that,” Eliav Barr, chief medical officer at Merck Research Laboratories, said in an interview at the American Society for Clinical Oncology meeting in Chicago on Sunday.
"We're talking a lot with different parties about this,” Barr said.
The pill, developed by the New Jersey-based drugmaker along with Ridgeback Biotherapeutics and sold under the brand Lagevrio, was approved for emergency use by the Food and Drug Administration during the pandemic for mild-to-moderate COVID-19 in adults at high risk for severe disease.
Although not an approved Ebola treatment, molnupiravir has shown some efficacy against Ebola in animal studies and could be useful to prevent Ebola infections in people at high risk. It is not recommended for use during pregnancy.
Merck makes an Ebola vaccine called Ervebo, which is approved for use against the more common Zaire Ebola virus. Barr said the technology behind the vaccine may be useful in developing a new vaccine.
"They may be able to alter it. We're looking at that,” he said.
Barr called the growing outbreak "very frightening," noting that the company has HIV research sites in Uganda across one of Africa's great lakes bordering the DRC. Uganda has already had nine confirmed cases of Ebola and one death.
"We're watching with trepidation," he said.
(Reporting by Julie Steenhuysen in Chicago; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
