By Treye Green @TreyeGreen
Two U.S. citizens infected with the Ebola
virus while in Liberia were the first
recipients of ZMapp, an experimental
treatment created by Mapp
Biopharmaceutical and LeafBio to help
fight the sometimes-deadly virus. The
patients, both aid workers, appear to be
improving after receiving ZMapp, but
questions remain about the drug, created
with tobacco plants, which had previously
been tested only on primates.
How Does The ZMapp Ebola Treatment
Work?
The ZMapp cocktail fuses the MB-003 and
ZMAb Ebola treatments. Created by
California-based Mapp Biopharmaceutical,
MB0-003 was shown to offer 100 percent
protection to monkeys from Ebola when it
was administered to the animals
immediately after they were exposed to the
virus. ZMapp offered monkeys a 100
percent survival rate a full day after
exposure and 50 percent after two days,
NBC News reported. ZMapp combines the
“best components” of the two treatments,
says a ZMapp information sheet recently
posted on the Mapp Bio site.
Since the antibodies present in the serum
were taken from mice exposed to Ebola, the
drug is known as a three-mouse monoclonal
antibody mixture, Forbes reports. Ideally,
the body’s immune system can vigilantly
fight off the virus once the antibodies from
the serum are present in the blood system.
The treatment offers an artificial immune
response to the virus, and the lab-made
antibodies then fight the infection by
sticking to the Ebola virus.
What Does Tobacco Have To Do With
The Treatment?
The artificial antibodies used in the
treatment are created from a tobacco-plant
strain found in Australia. The plants are
altered specifically for the serum and then
harvested and ground into the green mix
used in the serum doses, says the
Washington Post. The plants serve as an
ideal place to grow the massive amounts of
the antibodies needed for the treatment.
Speaking to Bloomberg, Charles Arntzen, a
plant biotechnology expert at Arizona State
University, says that the genes of the
antibodies scientist want are fused to the
tobacco genes, infecting the tobacco with
the virus. The plant produces antibodies
that are subsequently separated from the
plant when it is ground up.
Why Is It Available Only In The U.S.?
Since the antibodies used in the treatment
are created at Mapp Biopharmaceutical’s
plant in Kentucky, the small amount of the
ZMapp that exists is located in the United
States. The process to create the treatment
is extremely expensive and the serum
remains in an experimental stage.
Could The Treatment Work On A Larger
Scale?
Medical professionals say that ZMapp
could in theory be used to combat the Ebola
outbreak in West Africa. But officials
continue to remind people that other than
the two American patients, no human
testing has been done with the vaccine and
it has not been approved to be used on
humans in North America or anywhere else.
Producing enough ZMapp for human trials
would take at least two months.
How Did The U.S. Patients Get Access To
ZMapp?
In order for the two Americans to receive
the ZMapp treatment, it is believed the
FDA expedited the process needed to
approve human testing of an experimental
drug, CNN reports. This could have been
completed under the FDA’s “compassionate
use” regulation, which offers experimental
drugs to be used outside of clinical trials.
Dr. Kent Brantly received his first dose of
the serum after being ill for nine days.
Nancy Writebol received her dose around
7-10 days after being exposed to the Ebola
virus. The serum was flown to the hospital
in Liberia where both Brantly and Writebol
were receiving treatment.
Is The ZMapp Treatment Safe?
Medical professionals continue to stress
that the ZMapp hasn’t been approved for
human trials and that potential side effects
remain unknown. Doctors working with
Brantly and Writebol say their conditions
have improved since taking ZMapp. But
there is no way to immediately connect the
patients’ improvement to the vaccine. Their
improvement could be the result of their
immune systems naturally combating the virus
AL-PHAROOK MUHAMMAD BLOG 