Review Article
Hiewa Othman Dyary, Heshu Sula
Abstract
Ebola virus disease is an infection of human and nonhuman primates with fatality rates of up to 90%. Since 2014, the largest outbreak of Ebola virus in recorded history spread into several adjacent West African nations. The infection especially propagated into highly populated areas and where there was inadequate healthcare infrastructure and public sanitation. Such deficiencies permitted the widespread of the virus and caused more than 10,000 casualties to-date. Currently, no specific therapy is available and treatment of Ebola patients depends mainly on supportive care and symptomatic treatment. A worldwide effort has been made to develop new therapeutic strategies, several of which were potential vaccines where promising results were demonstrated in non-human primates. High throughput screening of FDA-approved drugs has revealed several compounds with potential anti-Ebola activity in vitro, which raises the idea of reconsidering the previously approved drugs as possible candidates against the virus. This article reviews the current drug candidates and prospects towards the development of potential EVD therapy.