On Thursday, Uganda confirmed an outbreak of the Ebola virus in its capital city Kampala, with the first confirmed patient dying from it a day before. As per the new developments, the officials are now preparing to deploy a trial vaccine to put an end to this outbreak.

Groups of scientists are working on the vaccine and deployment of more than 2,000 doses of a candidate vaccine against the Sudan strain of Ebola has been planned and confirmed by the Uganda Virus Research Institute. As per the World Health Organization (WHO), Uganda has access to 2,169 doses of trial vaccine. For now, however, there are no approved vaccines for the strain and officials are still investigating the source of the outbreak.

The WHO had also allocated $1 million from its contingency fund for emergencies to support quick action and contain the outbreak in the country.

Confirmed Case

On Wednesday, the Sudan strain of Ebola killed a nurse employed at Kampala's main referral hospital. It is after his death that Ebola was declared an outbreak in the country. Post-mortem samples too have confirmed the Sudan Ebola Virus Disease and at least 44 contacts of the deceased man have been listed for tracing. 30 of these are health workers.

Ebola is a highly infectious hemorrhagic fever, which is transmitted through contact with bodily fluids and tissue. Symptoms include headache, vomiting of blood, muscle pains and bleeding.

it was in the late 2022, when Uganda had last suffered an Ebola outbreak. It killed 55 of the 143 people who were infected and was declared over on January 11, 2023.

What Is Ebola Virus Disease?

As per the WHO, Ebola virus disease (EVD) is a rare but severe illness in humans and is often fatal. People can get infected with the virus if they touch an infected animal when preparing food, or touch body fluids of an infected person such as saliva, urine, faeces or semen, or things that have body fluids of an infected person like clothes or sheets.

How Does Transmission Work?

Ebola enters the body through cuts in the skin or when one is touching their eyes, nose or mouth. Early symptoms include fever, fatigue and headache.

It was first discovered in 1976 in two simultaneous outbreak, when in Nzara, South Sudan and other in Yambuku, Democratic Republic of Congo. The latter occurred near a village near the Ebola River, which is where it gets its name from.

It is highly infectious and transmissible disease, in fact, there have been cases of health-care workers who have frequently been infected while treating patients with suspected or confirmed Ebola. This occurs through close contact with patients when infection control precautions are not practiced strictly.

Cases of people conducted burial ceremonies, involving direct contact with the body of the deceased too can lead to the transmission of Ebola. Even after the long suffering and recovery, there is a possibility of sexual transmission. Pregnant women who get acute Ebola and recover may still carry the virus in their breastmilk, or in pregnancy related fluids and tissues.

Symptoms:

• feeling tired
• headache
• muscle and joint pain
• eye pain and vision problems
• weight gain
• belly pain and loss of appetite
• hair loss and skin problems
• trouble sleeping
• memory loss
• hearing loss
• depression and anxiety

The flu season has started earlier than expected in some parts of the country. The cases may erupt as soon as people start to travel, meet more people during the Thanksgiving and other upcoming holidays. However, there have been warning signs of a virus that has already set off massive outbreaks in UK and Canada, called the H3N2 subclade K.

What Is The Flu Strain Subclade K?

It is a variant of the H3N2 virus that had been circulating in other countries over the summers. Experts say the new variant is driving a surge in flu cases across Canada, Japan, and the U.K. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that of nearly 150 test samples identified as part of the H3 lineage, more than half belonged to the subclade K group.

The influx of patients have been high too, as Dr Cameron Wolfe, a disease specialist at Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, North Carolina suggest, and is reported by the NBC. "At the moment, we’ve had two, three, four per day coming in," he said.

Alicia Budd, who leads the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s domestic influenza surveillance team, said flu activity in the United States is expected to rise steadily in the coming weeks.

How Dangerous Is The New H3N2 Flu Strain?

So far, most of the flu circulating this season is the H3N2 strain, which historically causes more hospitalizations and deaths among older adults. An early spike in cases, experts say, can heighten risks for this age group. Wolfe noted that when flu season begins unusually early, some nursing homes may still be rolling out vaccinations and some hospitals may not have fully vaccinated their staff. As a result, communities may be less protected than they typically would be if the virus peaked later in the winter.

Overall flu activity remains low, but the CDC’s latest report shows cases climbing. The agency estimates that at least 650,000 people have had the flu so far this season, with around 7,400 hospitalized and 300 deaths reported.

Budd said most of the rise in cases and emergency room visits is occurring in children. Last year, 280 children in the United States died from the flu, marking the deadliest pediatric flu season ever recorded outside the 2009 to 2010 H1N1 pandemic. No pediatric deaths have been reported yet this season, though doctors remain concerned after last winter’s rapid spread of the virus through schools, day care centers and hospitals.

“It feels like the calm before the storm,” said Dr. Buddy Creech, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. “We may have a difficult influenza year.”

H3N2 is known for mutating easily, and a new version of the strain, known as subclade K, appeared over the summer with several mutations. It emerged after this season’s flu shot formula had already been finalized and has already driven significant outbreaks in Canada and the United Kingdom.

Budd said the CDC is studying how well the current vaccine matches this evolving strain, but she urged people to get vaccinated regardless. Even when the circulating strain is not a perfect match, she said, the shot still helps reduce the severity of illness.

Doctors across the country are watching the latest trends closely. “Does it turn on our antenna a little bit more? Yes,” said Dr. Daniel Varga, chief physician executive at Hackensack Meridian Health in New Jersey. “It makes us even more vigilant about the monitoring we do locally.”

Dr. Melanie Kitagawa, medical director of the pediatric intensive care unit at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston, stressed that it is not too late to get vaccinated. She said the more people who receive the flu shot before flu activity accelerates, the better protected communities will be.

Alzheimer’s patients have received discouraging news after the release of results from a major study. Novo Nordisk confirmed that its Alzheimer’s treatment did not show a “statistically significant” slowdown in the progression of the illness. Two trials evaluating the company’s weight loss medicine semaglutide in Alzheimer’s disease did not meet their targets, the firm said on Monday, as the drug failed to slow decline compared with a placebo.

Testing semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy, for Alzheimer’s had always been viewed as a high-risk attempt, even though research has suggested the drug may influence several processes beyond metabolism. Still, Novo had raised interest in recent weeks by advertising roles connected to Alzheimer’s consumer marketing and medical affairs.

Novo Nordisk Says Alzheimer's Drug Trial Fails

Novo Nordisk said on Monday that an older oral form of semaglutide did not achieve its main outcome in late-stage trials assessing whether the drug could reduce cognitive decline in people with Alzheimer’s disease, sending its shares down by 10 percent.

The development dims expectations that Alzheimer’s could become a major new area for GLP-1 medicines like semaglutide, at a time when Novo is facing stronger competition for its leading products in obesity and diabetes. Treatment choices for Alzheimer’s patients remain limited. The company’s study had been closely followed as a potential sign of whether GLP-1 drugs, widely used for diabetes and weight control, might slow the condition’s advance.

The pill tested was Rybelsus, approved only for type 2 diabetes and containing semaglutide, as reported by Reuters.

Novo Nordisk: Lottery Ticket Fails

The firm’s Executive Vice President for Product and Portfolio Strategy, Ludovic Helfgott, had earlier described the Alzheimer’s trials as a “lottery ticket,” reflecting both the uncertainty and the considerable promise involved. Alzheimer’s and related dementias affect more than 55 million people worldwide, and no cure exists. “While semaglutide did not demonstrate efficacy in slowing the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, the extensive body of evidence supporting semaglutide continues to provide benefits for individuals with type 2 diabetes, obesity, and related comorbidities,” Chief Scientific Officer Martin Holst Lange said in a statement.

The findings from the two early-stage studies, EVOKE and EVOKE+, mark another setback for the Danish company and its new CEO Mike Doustdar. Novo had experienced remarkable success with Ozempic and Wegovy, but slower sales growth and a sharp drop in its stock value led to a leadership shift and significant job cuts.

The disappointment adds weight to analysts’ doubts about Novo’s Alzheimer’s plans, with UBS having earlier estimated only a 10 percent likelihood of success.

Novo Nordisk: Alzheimer’s Trial Stakes And Outcome

Alzheimer’s, marked by deep cognitive decline, fading memory and changes in behaviour, remains one of the hardest challenges in drug research. Novo had repeatedly acknowledged the uncertainty surrounding these studies. Even so, the possible payoff was significant. Analysts at Morgan Stanley had estimated that a breakthrough could have added up to $5 billion in yearly revenue.

“We believed it was important to assess whether semaglutide could offer any benefit,” Chief Scientific Officer Martin Holst Lange said, referring to the drug better known as Ozempic. The treatment did show improvement in certain biological markers connected to Alzheimer’s, but these gains did not lead to a slower progression of the condition.

Novo Nordisk Stock: Impact On Competition And Obesity Market

The company is also working to strengthen its footing in the obesity sector. Any sign that Wegovy could influence the most common form of dementia might have provided an edge over Eli Lilly’s Zepbound in the United States, where competition in this field is intensifying.

Delhi residents are once again dealing with heavy pollution as a dense layer of smog covered the city on November 22. In response to the worsening situation, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) on Saturday put GRAP Stage IV curbs into force, as several monitoring stations across the Capital recorded air in the ‘severe’ category.

Under the updated rules, the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi and the NCR state administrations will decide whether public, municipal and private offices should function with only half their staff on site, with the remaining employees working from home. CAQM noted in its latest advisory, “CAQM has revised the GRAP schedule on 21.11.2025 to make it more stringent thus preventing further deterioration of air quality in Delhi-NCR.”

Which Measures Of GRAP 4 Are Being Taken Under GRAP 3?

As per CAQM, the following GRAP 4 steps will now be implemented during GRAP 3:

• NCR state governments and GNCTD will consider allowing public, municipal and private offices to operate at 50 percent capacity, with the remaining staff working remotely.
• The Central Government may also take a call on offering work-from-home options for employees in central government offices.

Other Restrictions In Delhi Under GRAP 3

Since GRAP 3 remains active in Delhi, activities such as non-essential construction, demolition work, and the use of older vehicle categories, including those below the Bharat Stage (BS)-IV emission norms, continue to be limited. People have been advised to minimise time spent outdoors, especially during the early mornings and late evenings when pollution is often at its peak. On Friday, the Delhi government also directed schools and other educational institutions to halt all sports and outdoor physical activities.

Stages of GRAP

GRAP follows four levels, each tied to the Air Quality Index (AQI) at the time.

Stage I of GRAP begins when air quality reaches the “poor” range (AQI between 201 and 300, which can cause breathing discomfort after prolonged exposure).

Stage II is enforced when air turns “very poor” (AQI between 301 and 400, which can result in respiratory issues with continued exposure).

Stage III comes into effect when pollution becomes “severe” (AQI between 401 and 500, a level at which even healthy individuals may feel the impact and those with existing conditions face serious health risks).

Stage IV of GRAP is declared when pollution crosses into the “severe+” range (AQI above 500).

India’s national AQI framework, created by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), categorises air quality based on its potential impact on health, ranging from mild discomfort to significant respiratory and heart-related problems.

Each stage of GRAP includes a fixed set of actions for authorities to follow. As pollution increases and GRAP moves to the next stage, measures from earlier levels continue. This creates a step-by-step response system designed to slow down the rise in pollution and prevent conditions from becoming even more harmful.

At the moment, GRAP III is in force in Delhi, as air quality has been shifting between the ‘severe’ and ‘very poor’ bands. A range of restrictions linked to this stage is already being implemented across the city.