Kilcullen scientist leading Ebola vaccine effort

A Kilcullen-born scientist is at the forefront of a race to develop a vaccine against the strain of Ebola virus that is devastating communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo, writes Brian Byrne. Professor Teresa Lambe is the lead investigator in the team working on the vaccine at the University of Oxford.

Preparations are being made for a human trial of the vaccine, using 50 healthy adult volunteers in the UK. The vaccine uses the same viral vector as the Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine, which Prof Lambe helped to develop during the pandemic, and which is estimated to have saved 6 million lives.

The current Ebola outbreak is estimated to have infected more than 2,000 people and killed 700 since the outbreak was declared in May.

Teresa is the daughter of Mary and Tony Lambe of Nicholastown. She works at The Jennings Institute at Oxford University and is a former student of CPC Kilcullen. A Tess Lambe Bursary has been established at the school, applicable to female students in Leaving Certificate classes who are studying any STEM subject at third level. 

Tess Lambe speaking to CPC students in 2024.

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