News outlets report on a deal between pharmaceutical companies Merck and NewLink to develop, test, and market a potential Ebola vaccine.

NPR: Merck Partners With NewLink To Speed Up Work On Ebola Vaccine
“[Monday] NewLink Genetics said it has made a deal with drugmaker Merck to research, develop, manufacture, and distribute [its] experimental Ebola vaccine. That move will put the two leading Ebola vaccine programs [the other being GlaxoSmithKline’s] on more equal footing…” (Harris, 11/24).

Reuters: Merck buys rights to NewLink’s experimental Ebola vaccine
“Merck & Co Inc (MRK.N) on Monday said it would buy worldwide commercial rights to NewLink Genetics Corp’s (NLNK.O) experimental vaccine against the Ebola virus. NewLink, whose subsidiary licensed commercial rights to the rVSV-EBOV vaccine in 2010, said it would receive $50 million plus royalties from Merck…” (Pierson, 11/24).

Wall Street Journal: Merck Obtains Rights to Experimental Ebola Vaccine
“…NewLink, of Ames, Iowa, has been developing a vaccine dubbed rVSV-EBOV, which NewLink licensed from the Public Health Agency of Canada. … The U.S. National Institutes of Health is planning a larger, human study in early 2015 to test rVSV-EBOV as well as another experimental Ebola vaccine co-developed by the NIH and GlaxoSmithKline PLC. Johnson & Johnson also is developing an experimental vaccine in partnership with Bavarian Nordic of Denmark…” (Loftus, 11/24).