Q: Has the Ebola outbreak been stopped? Was a vaccine invented? If so, who invented it?
—Eddie Webster, Douglasville
A: The Ebola epidemic continues in the West African countries of Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea. The World Health Organization and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have reported 8,626 deaths and 21,689 cases of Ebola (as of Jan. 18) since March 2014, and the WHO stated in a report last week that "getting case fatality down in affected countries is an ethical imperative."
Several Ebola vaccines are undergoing testing, or soon will start testing, a process that officials are attempting to shorten to months instead of the years that it usually takes. “We all want the momentum and sense of urgency to continue,” WHO Director-General Dr. Margaret Chan said last week. Johnson & Johnson has made 400,000 regimens of its experimental vaccine and could have 2 million available for use this year, NBCNews.com reported. A drug called favipiravir is being tested on Ebola patients in Guinea, the Los Angeles Times reported, and another called brincidofovir is expected to begin being tested in Liberia this year.
Q: While reading The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, I notice a number of articles written by journalists from other newspapers. Do other newspapers publish articles written by AJC journalists?
—Andrew Lederman, Lawrenceville
A: The Associated Press distributes AJC articles throughout the state and the country. The AJC also has a working relationship with the McClatchy Syndicate, which distributes AJC articles to its subscribers.
Andy Johnston wrote this column. Do you have a question about the news? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
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