Science
15 August 2014 vol 345, issue 6198, pages 709-844
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/345/6198.toc
Special Issue: Parenting

Infectious Diseases
Debate erupts on ‘repurposed’ drugs for Ebola
Martin Enserink
With the outbreak of Ebola in West Africa escalating, some scientists think they can save lives by using existing, approved drugs that weren’t developed for Ebola but that might nonetheless help patients. Among the proposals being floated are interferon α and statins. The advantage of such existing drugs is that they have been tested for safety, and they are cheap and widely available. But some Ebola scientists oppose trying anything that has not been shown to reduce mortality from Ebola in nonhuman primates. They say that some of the drugs might make the disease worse, and even if they just aren’t effective, they might hamper the prospects for the long-term future of more promising drugs developed specifically for Ebola. So far, the World Health Organization appears to be skeptical as well.