New vaccine hope in fight against ebola

An end to the ebola epidemic in West Africa may be in sight after results from a fast-tracked vaccine trial were described as “hugely important” and “very exciting” by experts.

The experimental vaccine VSV-ZEBOV was found to be 100% effective six days after it was administered to 7,651 people living in Guinea, where the virus has already claimed more than 2,500 lives.

It made no difference if people had the jab immediately or following a delay of three weeks after giving their consent to treatment.