Researchers from Siriraj Hospital in Thailand claimed that they have developed an antibody treatment for the Ebola virus, which could work on an intracellular level to combat the deadly virus from within.

Researchers said they believe the treatment will work better than other products being developed. There are no widely available treatments for the Ebola virus, except for an experimental drug called ZMapp that showed the promise in assisting several infected patients to recover.

The prototype antibodies were developed using human genes. The next step is to conduct animal testing before moving on to testing the vaccine on humans. If the tests are successful, the antibody would then need to be manufactured on a large scale.

This development for the first time in the world could lead to a treatment applied after infection, as opposed to a pre-infection vaccine, to stimulate the body’s natural immune system to fight off infection.

Ebola is spread by close contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person who is showing symptoms, or by touching the corpse of a person who died from the virus. The fast-growing Ebola outbreak in West Africa has killed more than 3,000 people since the start of the year.-VNA