The United States' second biggest pharmaceuticals company has announced it will buy worldwide commercial rights to an experimental vaccine against the Ebola virus.
NewLink Genetics Corp, whose subsidiary licensed commercial rights to the rVSV-EBOV vaccine in 2010, said it would receive $50 million plus royalties from Merck & Co Inc.
Large late-stage trials of the product could begin early next year, said Merck, one of the world's biggest makers of vaccines.
Merck, which would be able to speed up and significantly boost production, would take over development of the vaccine and any follow-on products.
The Public Health Agency of Canada, which originally developed the vaccine, would retain non-commercial rights to it.