Epidemiologist available to discuss DRC Ebola outbreak

May 25, 2026

Lina Moses

Clinical Assistant Professor

Lina Moses' primary interest is the control of viral zoonoses transmitted from small mammals

A new Ebola outbreak is surging in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reporting more than 200 cases and 65 deaths in the early days of the epidemic.

Tulane University epidemiologist and disease ecologist Lina Moses said the bulk of the cases right now are suspected cases and are not lab-confirmed, suggesting there is limited testing available. That poses difficulties in identifying and isolating cases as Ebola is hard to distinguish from other diseases common to the area, particularly malaria, influenza and other flu-like viruses and gastrointestinal diseases.

"The scope of this outbreak is already much larger than we'd like to respond to, in terms of early detection and intervention, and that's a cause for concern," said Moses, who coordinated contact tracing during the 2014 West African Ebola outbreak and acted as advisor to the World Health Organization during subsequent outbreaks.

Another concern is the location. The cases have been reported in the eastern side of the country, an area that has seen tremendous unrest, limiting health facilities' ability to respond quickly to outbreaks such as this one.

"This is also an area that borders Uganda and Burundi, so it's an area with a lot of population movement," Moses said. "This is just north of where the second largest Ebola outbreak happened from 2018-2020, and because of this unrest and instability, that outbreak was very difficult to control. It may be difficult to control this one as well for the same reasons."

The species of this Ebola virus has not yet been publicly identified.

The Ebola Zaire strain has been common in the DRC and is highly deadly, but more tools are available to combat it, such as a vaccine and FDA-approved treatments. The Sudan strain, on the other hand, does not have the same medical countermeasures, Moses said.

Lina Moses is available to speak on the Ebola virus outbreak. To schedule an interview, please contact Tulane University Assistant Director of Media Relations Andrew Yawn at ayawn@tulane.edu.