Developing a Vaccine Strategy for Lethal Disease in Young Elephants

Endangered Asian elephants are facing many threats, including elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV), an infectious disease first recognized in elephants nearly two decades ago. EEHV usually establishes chronic and generally benign infections in most Asian elephants, but often is lethal to juvenile elephants. Despite the availability of sensitive tests and improved protocols for treating EEHV-associated illness, these measures are not always effective. The best line of defense would be a preventive vaccine. Vaccines target specific pathogen proteins to “educate” the vaccine recipient's immune system to react to the same protein in an invading virus or bacteria. As a first critical step in this endeavor, researchers will identify EEHV proteins that could be considered good targets for vaccine development. A successful EEHV vaccine would greatly contribute to improving health care of conservation and wild-range Asian elephants, as well as African elephants also affected by this disease.