Quantcast
ZME Science
  • News
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Future
  • Space
  • Features
    Menu
    Natural Sciences
    Health
    History & Humanities
    Space & Astronomy
    Technology
    Culture
    Resources
    Natural Sciences

    Physics

    • Matter and Energy
    • Quantum Mechanics
    • Thermodynamics

    Chemistry

    • Periodic Table
    • Applied Chemistry
    • Materials
    • Physical Chemistry

    Biology

    • Anatomy
    • Biochemistry
    • Ecology
    • Genetics
    • Microbiology
    • Plants and Fungi

    Geology and Paleontology

    • Planet Earth
    • Earth Dynamics
    • Rocks and Minerals
    • Volcanoes
    • Dinosaurs
    • Fossils

    Animals

    • Mammals
    • Birds
    • Fish
    • Reptiles
    • Amphibians
    • Invertebrates
    • Pets
    • Conservation
    • Animals Facts

    Climate and Weather

    • Climate Change
    • Weather and Atmosphere

    Geography

    Mathematics

    Health
    • Drugs
    • Diseases and Conditions
    • Human Body
    • Mind and Brain
    • Food and Nutrition
    • Wellness
    History & Humanities
    • Anthropology
    • Archaeology
    • Economics
    • History
    • People
    • Sociology
    Space & Astronomy
    • The Solar System
    • The Sun
    • The Moon
    • Planets
    • Asteroids, Meteors and Comets
    • Astronomy
    • Astrophysics
    • Cosmology
    • Exoplanets and Alien Life
    • Spaceflight and Exploration
    Technology
    • Computer Science & IT
    • Engineering
    • Inventions
    • Sustainability
    • Renewable Energy
    • Green Living
    Culture
    • Culture and Society
    • Bizarre Stories
    • Lifestyle
    • Art and Music
    • Gaming
    • Books
    • Movies and Shows
    Resources
    • How To
    • Science Careers
    • Metascience
    • Fringe Science
    • Science Experiments
    • School and Study
    • Natural Sciences
    • Health
    • History and Humanities
    • Space & Astronomy
    • Culture
    • Technology
    • Resources
  • Reviews
  • More
    • Agriculture
    • Anthropology
    • Biology
    • Chemistry
    • Electronics
    • Geology
    • History
    • Mathematics
    • Nanotechnology
    • Economics
    • Paleontology
    • Physics
    • Psychology
    • Robotics
  • About Us
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science

No Result
View All Result
ZME Science

Home → Science

UK zoo starts vaccine trials for a deadly elephant virus

It’s a world’s first and it could save lives of many elephants.

Fermin Koop by Fermin Koop
February 4, 2022
in Animals, Environment, News, Science

Asian elephants (Elephas maximus indicus) are by far the largest land mammal on the Asian continent, measuring up to 11 feet and weighing up to 5 tons. Their habitat covers 13 countries in South and Southeast Asia, but despite a relatively large spread, they are under serious threat from poaching and habitat destruction. To make matters even worse, there’s even a deadly virus threatening them. Now, a zoo in the UK wants to address this by working on a potentially life-saving vaccine for elephants.

Image credit: Wikipedia Commons.

Together with University of Surrey researchers, the Chester Zoo has long been looking at the Elephant endotheliotropic herpesvirus (EEHV), a type of herpes virus that can cause hemorrhagic disease when transmitted to young elephants. When the virus is detected in the blood or symptoms appear, it’s usually too late to treat the disease.  

EEHV can affect any elephant, from young to adults. It’s known to have caused deaths in at least eight countries, including Nepal, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka. Asian elephants are now listed are endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN), with all hopes placed on a vaccine solution. 

The virus has been detected in zoos, sanctuaries, safari parks, and, more worryingly, in wild elephants. A study by veterinary scientist Sonia Jesus Fontes estimated that EEHV caused 52% of the deaths of Asian elephants in European zoos since 1985. In North America, the virus was accounted to have caused 50% of the deaths since 1980. 

The team at Chester Zoo, including veterinarians, keepers, and immunologists, is now officially starting the trial of the vaccine, after long years of research. The backbone of the vaccine is the same as the one used to immunize elephants against the cowpox virus. Groups around the world have studied the EEHV virus but Chester Zoo is now taking a big step forward. 

“The only long-term solution to beating EEHV is to find a vaccine. Without zoos caring for the species it would be almost impossible to achieve that but, thankfully, we’re now making remarkable progress. The global conservation community is today a step closer to finding a viable vaccine,” Mike Jordan, head of Animals and Plants at the zoo, said in a statement. 

First steps of the vaccine

A healthy 20-year-old male elephant named Aung Bo is the first one to participate in the trials of the vaccine, with early tests showing an immune response. The trial was only possible due to the elephant’s willingness to participate. Vets test the elephants regularly for the virus, so they got used to providing blood samples on a regular basis.

Tanja Maehr, lead researcher at the University of Surrey, described this as an important moment in the team’s research, with “real optimism” to find a safe vaccine that works. While the initial results from the trials are positive, with the vaccine stimulating an immune response, these are still the early days on the road to an approved vaccine. 

“It’ll be several months until the first stage of our work to select the best candidate vaccine and determine optimal dosages and frequencies is complete. Then, if successful, further trials in zoos and in the field will need to take place to fully ascertain its efficacy,” Maehr, also a conservation fellow at the zoo, said in a statement. 

Was this helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
Related posts:
  1. Germany starts coronavirus vaccine trials in humans
  2. Moderna starts human trials of an mRNA-based flu vaccine
  3. Elephant starts crying after being released from 50 years of abuse
  4. The US starts rabies vaccine program for wildlife by airdropping treat-covered vaccines in 13 states
  5. What Benjamin Franklin’s battles with a deadly virus that swept Colonial America can teach us about our own struggles with anti-vaxxers
Tags: elephants

ADVERTISEMENT
  • News
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Future
  • Space
  • Features
  • Reviews
  • More
  • About Us

© 2007-2021 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • News
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Future
  • Space
  • Features
    • Natural Sciences
    • Health
    • History and Humanities
    • Space & Astronomy
    • Culture
    • Technology
    • Resources
  • Reviews
  • More
    • Agriculture
    • Anthropology
    • Biology
    • Chemistry
    • Electronics
    • Geology
    • History
    • Mathematics
    • Nanotechnology
    • Economics
    • Paleontology
    • Physics
    • Psychology
    • Robotics
  • About Us
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact

© 2007-2021 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.

Don’t you want to get smarter every day?

YES, sign me up!

Over 35,000 subscribers can’t be wrong. Don’t worry, we never spam. By signing up you agree to our privacy policy.

✕
ZME Science News

FREE
VIEW