Pre- and Postexposure Prophylaxis of Ebola Virus Infection in an Animal Model by Passive Transfer of a Neutralizing Human Antibody

A neutralizing human monoclonal antibody, KZ52, protects guinea pigs from lethal Ebola Zaire virus challenge. Administration before or up to 1 h after challenge resulted in dose-dependent protection by the antibody. Interestingly, some antibody-treated animals survived despite developing high-level viremia, suggesting that the mechanism of protection by KZ52 may extend beyond reduction of viremia by virus neutralization. KZ52 is a promising candidate for immunoprophylaxis of Ebola virus infection.