WHO launches PARTNERS trial to test treatments for Bundibugyo Ebola as DRC outbreak grows
WHO begins patient enrolment in PARTNERS trial in DRC to evaluate MBP134 and remdesivir against Bundibugyo Ebola amid rising cases and deaths.
WHO opens PARTNERS trial in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
In a coordinated announcement on July 2, 2026, the World Health Organization said patient enrolment has begun in the PARTNERS clinical trial to find effective treatments for Bundibugyo Ebola. The platform trial will assess two antiviral approaches and whether combining them improves survival for people diagnosed with Bundibugyo virus disease. (who.int)
The trial launch follows weeks of rapid spread of the Bundibugyo strain in eastern DRC, where authorities and WHO have prioritized research alongside emergency response. Organizers say the research is being integrated into clinical care to ensure patients receive investigational therapies together with supportive treatment. (who.int)
Therapies under evaluation in the study
The PARTNERS trial will compare a monoclonal antibody candidate known as MBP134 with the antiviral remdesivir, and will also evaluate the potential benefit of using the two agents in combination. Trial designers selected these candidates after a technical review of preclinical and safety data and lessons from past outbreak responses. (who.int)
Patients enrolled in the randomised, controlled study will receive standard supportive care — including fluids, electrolyte replacement and oxygen where needed — together with the assigned investigational treatment, and will be followed closely for at least 28 days after enrolment. The platform design permits new therapies to be added as evidence emerges. (who.int)
International partners and trial structure
WHO is sponsoring the PARTNERS trial and has coordinated its implementation with the Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB) in the DRC, the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Belgium and the University of Oxford, with support from Africa CDC and a range of clinical and humanitarian partners. Independent data monitoring will review safety and efficacy as the trial progresses. (who.int)
The trial’s platform approach is intended to operate across multiple outbreaks, enabling researchers to evaluate candidate treatments quickly and efficiently during active responses, rather than waiting until after an outbreak has ended. Organisers say this model aims to produce actionable evidence in months instead of years. (who.int)
Outbreak scale and recent case statistics
Since the outbreak was declared in mid-May 2026, health authorities have reported more than 1,400 laboratory-confirmed cases of Bundibugyo virus disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with nearly 440 deaths and roughly 210 documented recoveries to date. Those figures reflect the rapid evolution of the epidemic in several northeastern provinces. (who.int)
WHO and regional offices have stressed that Bundibugyo is a less common Ebola species for which no licensed vaccines or treatments exist, increasing the urgency of evaluating candidate therapeutics in the field. The virus has also crossed borders, with cases reported in Uganda, prompting a multi-country public health response and declaration of the event as a public health emergency of international concern earlier in the outbreak. (who.int)
Voices from WHO, researchers and DRC authorities
WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the PARTNERS trial offers “real hope” that safe and effective therapeutics can be identified to save more lives during the outbreak, noting that people do recover from Bundibugyo disease even without approved treatments. He emphasised the need to fast-track evidence generation in partnership with affected communities. (who.int)
Professor Amanda Rojek, operations lead for the PARTNERS trial and associate professor at Oxford’s Pandemic Sciences Institute, said research must run alongside response efforts so that results can inform clinical care “in months rather than years.” DRC’s Minister of Health, Dr Samuel Roger Kamba, described the trial as a significant step that brings renewed hope to patients, families and communities. (who.int)
What the trial could mean for outbreak response and preparedness
If one or both regimens prove safe and effective for Bundibugyo virus disease, the findings could immediately influence patient care in the current outbreak and inform stockpiling and treatment guidelines for future Ebola epidemics. Researchers say establishing an adaptable platform is key to rapid evaluation of treatments for filovirus diseases beyond a single event. (who.int)
Trial organisers caution that results will take time and that robust monitoring of safety and efficacy is essential, but they underscore that integrating research with clinical care helps ensure patients gain access to promising options while generating the data needed to guide practice at scale. (who.int)
The PARTNERS trial’s opening marks a major step in the international response to the Bundibugyo outbreak, coupling emergency clinical care with an evidence-driven effort to identify the first treatments specifically shown to help patients infected with this Ebola species.