A VACCINE to stop a virus that threatens to wipe out the Asian elephant is being trialled at Chester UK Zoo.
Elephant endotheliotropic herpes virus (EEHV) is carried by almost all Asian elephants but for around half it can develop into a potentially fatal illness.
The world’s 40,000 Asian elephants are already on the International Union For The Conservation Of Nature’s red list of threatened species.
EEHV causes fever and bleeding and has killed elephants in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia and Myanmar – as well as in zoos and sanctuaries. But scientists at the University of Surrey and Chester Zoo, which lost four elephants to the virus, have developed the first jab that stimulates a life-saving immune response.
So far vets and elephant care teams at Chester UK Zoo – whose healthy 20-year-old bull was the first to participate – have reported no adverse effects, but trials are still in the early stages.
Dr Falko Steinbach, professor of veterinary immunology at the University of Surrey, said: “We are not getting ahead of ourselves. While this is a significant step in the right direction, and the initial signs are positive, these are still early days.”
Dr Tanja Maehr, lead researcher at the university and a Chester Zoo Conservation Fellow, added: “This is a small step for vaccines and a large step for the world’s elephants.
“However, it’s not yet enough to prove the vaccine will prevent young elephants from dying of EEHV.
“If successful, trials in zoos and in the field will need to take place.”
Source: EXPRESS
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