The Scripps Research Institute will hold a panel discussion Wednesday afternoon on efforts in San Diego to respond to the outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus in West Africa.
Among the scheduled panelists is Kevin Whaley, CEO of Mapp Biopharmaceutical, a Sorrento Valley firm that produced an experimental treatment administered to two American health workers who were sickened by the virus and subsequently recovered.
A British man was also given the medication, called ZMapp, as was a Liberian physician who died of the disease.
Other scheduled panelists are Scripps Research Institute professor Dr. Erica Ollmann Saphire, who heads an international effort to find antibodies to fight the Ebola virus, and Mark O'Donnell, chief operating officer of Project Concern International.
O'Donnell's organization is involved in humanitarian assistance efforts in Liberia to prevent the spread of Ebola. PCI also trains healthcare workers and delivers emergency medical supplies.
The panel discussion is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. in the Beckman Building at TSRI, 10650 North Torrey Pines Road.
While the event is free and open to the public, reservations are required. People interested in attending are asked to contact Chelsea Luedeke by calling (858) 784-7083, or via email at cluedeke@scripps.edu.
