Fighting Ebola in San Diego with Dr. Saphire

The two missionaries being treated in the United States for Ebola are showing positive signs of recovery after receiving medication called ZMapp developed in San Diego. KUSI News was joined Wednesday by Dr. Erica Saphire, a professor of immunology and microbial science at Scripps Research Institute. There, doctors are looking at using antibodies to fight the Ebola virus.

Dr. Saphire is a molecular biologist, focusing on how viruses infect cells as well as how antibodies are made to defeat infection. She further breaks down how the Ebola virus drives itself into human cells for someone to become infected with the deadly disease.

Furthermore, Dr. Saphire breaks down how antibodies can defeat the virus. ZMapp is the antidote that has been recently administered to the two infected Americans currently recovering in Atlanta; reportedly, the two have become much healthier after given the experimental medication. Dr. Saphire says ZMapp stabilizes infected cells in order to provide a foundation for the human body to create antibodies to combat the virus, all the while neutralizing the virus by keeping it from infecting further cells in the body.