Submitted by J. Hudson on Tue, 26/05/2026 - 09:45
A leading researcher from the Department of Veterinary Medicine has been featured in national media coverage examining the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
Professor Jonathan Heeney, Fellow of Darwin College and Head of the Laboratory of Viral Zoonotics at the University of Cambridge Department of Veterinary Medicine, was featured in The Observer on Sunday discussing the urgent need for broader protection against emerging Ebola strains.
Drawing on his experience working in Guinea during the devastating 2014 West African Ebola outbreak, Professor Heeney highlighted the importance of developing adaptable vaccine technologies capable of responding rapidly to different viral strains.
His laboratory has spent the past decade developing vaccine technology designed to protect against multiple haemorrhagic fever viruses, including Ebola, Marburg and Lassa fever. The team is now adapting its prototype vaccine technology to target the Bundibugyo strain currently affecting communities in the DRC.
Professor Heeney told The Observer:
“It’s just shocking that we’re going through it all again, and everybody’s thinking: ‘Why don’t we have a vaccine?’ Well, we do have a vaccine but we need to get that vaccine funded.”