MOSCOW, August 9. /TASS/. More than 1,000 volunteers will be vaccinated in the course of the study to evaluate the effectiveness of the Russian Ebola vaccine, the press service of the Russian Health Ministry reported.

"Vaccination against the Ebola fever will begin today, on August 9, in the course of research that will be conducted on the basis of the Scientific Clinical and Diagnostic Center of Epidemiology and Microbiology. It is planned to vaccinate more than 1,000 volunteers," the ministry said on its website.

The first batch of the vaccine was sent to the Republic of Guinea on July 12.

About vaccine

According to the Russian Health Ministry, Russia’s Gam Evac Combi is the world’s first officially registered vaccine approved for clinical use for the prevention of hemorrhagic fever caused by the Ebola virus.

The presentation of the Russian vaccines (named Gam Evac and Gam Evac Combi) to the World Health Organization (WHO) took place in Geneva on February 15.

At a meeting between Russian Health Minister Veronika Skvortsova and WHO Director-General Margaret Chan, the two sides emphasized the importance of the Russian Ebola vaccine for the international community.

According to Skvortsova, the Russian vaccine has proved its effectiveness. "One hundred percent of vaccinated people have a high antibody titer to the causative agent. We have been monitoring the vaccinated individuals for five months now, and this titer has remained high for five months. The blood serum of those vaccinated completely kills and neutralizes the virus in laboratory conditions," the minister explained.

She added that the Russian vaccine has also proved its safety and good tolerance and has practically no side effects.