Tekmira Pharmaceuticals Corporation (NASDAQ:TKMR) surged during the extended hours trading after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed that the first case of Ebola virus was diagnosed in the United States.
Tekmira and other pharmaceutical stocks climb
The stock price of Tekmira Pharmaceuticals Corporation (NASDAQ:TKMR) climbed 22.89%% to $25.90 per share at the time of this writing, around 5:36 P.M. in New York.
The shares of BioCryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:BCRX) and Sarepta Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SRPT) also rallied 12.47% to $11 per share and 6.30% to $22.65 per share at the time of this writing.
Yesterday, Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital of Dallas issued a statement that a patient was placed in a “strict isolation” and was tested for Ebola virus due to his symptom and recent travel history.
Update on Ebola Outbreak in Nigeria and Senegal
Earlier today, the CDC reported that the Ebola Outbreak in Nigeria appears to be nearing a possible end due to the rapid response coordinated by the country’s Emergency Operations Center with the assistance from international partners.
According to the CDC, the Ebola Outbreak officially ends when two of the 21-day incubation periods for the virus passed without any new cases. During the outbreak, there were 19 laboratory-confirmed and one probable Ebola cases in the two states of Nigeria.
The agency said almost 900 patient contacts were identified and followed. Most of the patients (897) completed the 21 days of the follow-up period without symptoms of Ebola virus, and the remaining three patients will exit their 21-days follow-up on October 2. No new cases were found since August 31, which strongly suggest that the outbreak in the country was already contained.
CDC Director Tom Frieden, M.D, M.P.H. said, “Although Nigeria isn’t completely out of the woods, their extensive response to a single case of Ebola shows that control is possible with rapid, focused interventions.”
On the other hand, CDC reported that Senegal managed to prevent an Ebola outbreak after confirming its first case on August 29.
