Dr. Wendy Maury, a virologist at the University of Iowa, worked with Dr. Robert Davey, Scientist and Ewing Halsell Scholar in the Texas Biomed Department of Virology and Immunology, to test whether gamma interferon, which is an FDA-approved drug, has potential as an antiviral therapy to prevent Ebola infection.
She first ran her study using a surrogate virus and then joined forces with Dr. Davey to test the potential drug candidate in Texas Biomed’s Biosafety Level 4 laboratory against actual Ebola virus.
The study found that this drug can inhibit Ebola infection in mice and completely protect the animals from death if given up to 24 hours after exposure.
For the full release, please visit: Eurekalert press release.