DAVID DISHNEU
Associated Press

A vaccine research center established 40 years ago at the University of Maryland medical school in Baltimore is helping test an experimental Ebola vaccine in the West African nation of Mali.

Founder Myron “Mike” Levine (lah-VEEN’), said Friday that the Center for Vaccine Development and the Malian (MAH’-lee-en) Ministry of Health are administering the vaccine to 40 healthy medical workers in the capital city of Bamako (BAH’-mah-koh).

Mali shares a border with Guinea, one of three nearby countries where Ebola has killed more than 4,000 people.

Levine says the university and the government of Mali established a branch vaccine center there in 2001 to combat bacterial infections in children. He says the Malian center’s past work with the World Health Organization led to its involvement in the Ebola vaccine project.

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